cephalopod

/ˈsɛfələpɑd/

//ˈsɛfələpɑd// noun

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

"cephalopod" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“cephalopod” is uncommon English (frequency #86,123 among 5,599 “C” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#86,123
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Any mollusc of the class Cephalopoda, which includes squid, cuttlefish, octopus, nautiloids etc.

Corpus desk

Index EN-cephalopod · cephalopod · English

cephalopod · rank #86,123 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #86,123
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH cerise

Nearest frequency peer: cerise (+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 “cephalopod”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for cephalopod
PropertyValue
Headwordcephalopod
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈsɛfələpɑd/
Letters10
Frequency rank#86,123
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “cephalopod” 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).cephalopodfalls 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: “cerise” (#86,124), “Chahal” (#86,125), “Chalcedon” (#86,126). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “cephalopod” is #86,123. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

cephalopod is uncommon English at frequency #86,123 among 5,599 “C” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈsɛfələpɑd/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Any mollusc of the class Cephalopoda, which includes squid, cuttlefish, octopus, nautiloids etc.".

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for cephalopod, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: From French céphalopode, from Ancient Greek κεφαλή (kephalḗ, “head”) + ποδός (podós), genitive singular of πούς (poús, “foot, leg”). By surface analysis, cephalo- + -pod. The correct English form is cephalopod, spelled C-E-P-H-A-L-O-P-O-D.

Definition

  1. 1
    Any mollusc of the class Cephalopoda, which includes squid, cuttlefish, octopus, nautiloids etc.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. In terms of diversity, cephalopods include the egg case making argonauts, shelled nautiluses, venomous blue-ringed octopuses and enigmatic giants like the giant and colossal squid. […] Generally, cephalopod ink includes melanin, enzymes related to melanin production, catecholamines, peptidoglycans, free amino acids and metals (Derby 2014) .

Etymology

From French céphalopode, from Ancient Greek κεφαλή (kephalḗ, “head”) + ποδός (podós), genitive singular of πούς (poús, “foot, leg”). By surface analysis, cephalo- + -pod.

This word in other languages

cefalópodo(Español)céphalopode(Français)Kopffüßer(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 "cephalopod"?
"cephalopod" is spelled C-E-P-H-A-L-O-P-O-D. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈsɛfələpɑd/.
What does "cephalopod" mean?
As a noun, "cephalopod" means: Any mollusc of the class Cephalopoda, which includes squid, cuttlefish, octopus, nautiloids etc.
How do you pronounce "cephalopod"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "cephalopod" is /ˈsɛfələpɑd/. 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 "cephalopod"?
From French céphalopode, from Ancient Greek κεφαλή (kephalḗ, “head”) + ποδός (podós), genitive singular of πούς (poús, “foot, leg”). By surface analysis, cephalo- + -pod. 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 "cephalopod", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 10 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

chalcedony#86,127binational#86,069debasement#86,194doubletree#86,225

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list