candela

/kænˈdɛlə/

//kænˈdɛlə// noun

"candela" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“candela” is uncommon English (frequency #75,699 among 5,599 “C” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#75,699
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - In the International System of Units, the base unit of luminous intensity; the luminous intensity, in a given direction, of a source that emits monochromatic radiation of frequency 540 × 10¹² hertz...

Corpus desk

Index EN-candela · candela · English

candela · rank #75,699 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #75,699
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH capon

Nearest frequency peer: capon (+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 “candela”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for candela
PropertyValue
Headwordcandela
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/kænˈdɛlə/
Letters7
Frequency rank#75,699
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “candela” 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).candelafalls 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: “capon” (#75,700), “cajole” (#75,697), “caesium” (#75,696). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “candela” is #75,699. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

candela is uncommon English at frequency #75,699 among 5,599 “C” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /kænˈdɛlə/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "In the International System of Units, the base unit of luminous intensity; the luminous intensity, in a given direction, of a source that emits monochromatic radiation of frequency 540 × 10¹² hertz...".

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for candela, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. Our dataset records no confusable match here, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Latin candēla (“candle”). Doublet of candle and chandelle. The correct English form is candela, spelled C-A-N-D-E-L-A.

Definition

  1. 1
    In the International System of Units, the base unit of luminous intensity; the luminous intensity, in a given direction, of a source that emits monochromatic radiation of frequency 540 × 10¹² hertz and that has a radiant intensity in that direction of 1/683 watt per steradian. Symbol: cd

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin candēla (“candle”). Doublet of candle and chandelle.

This word in other languages

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 "candela"?
"candela" is spelled C-A-N-D-E-L-A. The IPA pronunciation is /kænˈdɛlə/.
What does "candela" mean?
As a noun, "candela" means: In the International System of Units, the base unit of luminous intensity; the luminous intensity, in a given direction, of a source that emits monochromatic radiation of frequency 540 × 10¹² hertz...
How do you pronounce "candela"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "candela" is /kænˈdɛlə/. 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 "candela"?
Borrowed from Latin candēla (“candle”). Doublet of candle and chandelle. 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 "candela", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list