camomile

/ˈkæ.məˌmaɪl/

//ˈkæ.məˌmaɪl// noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"camomile" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“camomile” is uncommon English (frequency #90,251 among 5,599 “C” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#90,251
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A composite plant with a fragrance reminiscent of apples:

Corpus desk

Index EN-camomile · camomile · English

camomile · rank #90,251 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #90,251
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH Calvi

Nearest frequency peer: Calvi (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Long-tail ranks near “camomile”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “camomile” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for camomile
PropertyValue
Headwordcamomile
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈkæ.məˌmaɪl/
Letters8
Frequency rank#90,251
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “camomile” in English

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).camomilefalls in this rarity band:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Rare peers in the same band: “Calvi” (#90,250), “Caloundra” (#90,249), “Cahokia” (#90,248). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “camomile” is #90,251. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

camomile is uncommon English at frequency #90,251 among 5,599 “C” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈkæ.məˌmaɪl/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.

Zero misspellings are on record for camomile in our index, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English camamille, first attested 1265, from Old French camomille, from Late Latin camomilla, from Latin chamaemelon, from Ancient Greek χαμαίμηλον (khamaímēlon, literally “earth-apple”), from χαμαί (khamaí, “on the ground”) + μῆλον (mêlon, “app… The correct English form is camomile, spelled C-A-M-O-M-I-L-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A composite plant with a fragrance reminiscent of apples:
  2. 2
    A composite plant with a fragrance reminiscent of apples:
  3. 3
    Any of several other similar plants. (See below)
  4. 4
    Ellipsis of camomile tea.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

These source excerpts show how camomile appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. On another occasion, when trying to brainstorm things I could do to make myself feel better despite all the pandemic restrictions, Woebot suggested I “try doing something nice for someone in your life,” like make a calming tea for my housemate or check in with a loved one. I poured my mum some chamomile: Two birds, one stone.

Etymology

From Middle English camamille, first attested 1265, from Old French camomille, from Late Latin camomilla, from Latin chamaemelon, from Ancient Greek χαμαίμηλον (khamaímēlon, literally “earth-apple”), from χαμαί (khamaí, “on the ground”) + μῆλον (mêlon, “apple”). So called because of the apple-like scent of the plant.

This word in other languages

manzanilla(Español)camomille(Français)Kamille(Deutsch)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "camomile"?
"camomile" is spelled C-A-M-O-M-I-L-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈkæ.məˌmaɪl/.
What does "camomile" mean?
As a noun, "camomile" means: A composite plant with a fragrance reminiscent of apples:
How do you pronounce "camomile"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "camomile" is /ˈkæ.məˌmaɪl/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "camomile"?
From Middle English camamille, first attested 1265, from Old French camomille, from Late Latin camomilla, from Latin chamaemelon, from Ancient Greek χαμαίμηλον (khamaímēlon, literally “earth-apple”), from χαμαί (khamaí, “on the ground”) + μῆλον (m... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "camomile", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

carnitas#90,260carryout#90,261Brundage#90,231Bogdanov#90,216

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list