cauterize
/ˈkɔːtəɹaɪz/
"cauterize" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“cauterize” is uncommon English (frequency #90,268 among 43,570 “C” headwords), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- #90,268
- frequency rank, English
- 43,570
- “C” headwords
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - To burn and hence seal open tissue using a heated article or caustic agent so as to stop bleeding or minimise the risk of infection.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | cauterize |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| IPA | /ˈkɔːtəɹaɪz/ |
| Letters | 9 |
| Frequency rank | #90,268 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “cauterize” sits in English frequency
Rare enough to double-check
cauterize is uncommon English at frequency #90,268 among 43,570 “C” headwords, classed as averb, transcribed /ˈkɔːtəɹaɪz/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "To burn and hence seal open tissue using a heated article or caustic agent so as to stop bleeding or minimise the risk of infection.".
cauterize doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle French cauteriser, from Late Latin cauterizō (“to burn with a hot iron”), from Ancient Greek καυτηριάζω (kautēriázō, “to brand”), from καυτήρ (kautḗr, “branding iron”), from καίω (kaíō, “to burn”). The correct English form is cauterize, spelled C-A-U-T-E-R-I-Z-E.
Definition
- 1To burn and hence seal open tissue using a heated article or caustic agent so as to stop bleeding or minimise the risk of infection.
Etymology
From Middle French cauteriser, from Late Latin cauterizō (“to burn with a hot iron”), from Ancient Greek καυτηριάζω (kautēriázō, “to brand”), from καυτήρ (kautḗr, “branding iron”), from καίω (kaíō, “to burn”).
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
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Using “cauterize”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is C-A-U-T-E-R-I-Z-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈkɔːtəɹaɪz/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Other uncommon English words near this rank
Data Source
Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.