chinchilla

/t͡ʃɪnˈt͡ʃɪlə/

//t͡ʃɪnˈt͡ʃɪlə// noun

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

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

The verdict

“chinchilla” has 14 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #48,661. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#48,661
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords
14
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A small, crepuscular rodent of the genus Chinchilla, native to the Andes Mountains, prized for their very soft fur and often kept as pets.

Corpus desk

Index EN-chinchilla · chinchilla · English

chinchilla · rank #48,661 · 14 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #48,661
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 14 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH chrysanthemum

Nearest frequency peer: chrysanthemum (+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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “chinchilla”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “chinchilla” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for chinchilla
PropertyValue
Headwordchinchilla
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/t͡ʃɪnˈt͡ʃɪlə/
Letters10
Frequency rank#48,661
Misspellings tracked14
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “chinchilla”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).chinchillalands here:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “chrysanthemum” (#48,662), “charmingly” (#48,659), “Cobham” (#48,663). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “chinchilla” is #48,661. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 14 spelling variants around chinchilla (IPA /t͡ʃɪnˈt͡ʃɪlə/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #48,661 among 5,599 “C” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 14 likely wrong-spelling variants for chinchilla, with forms such as "cchinchilla", "chhinchilla", and "chicnhilla". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Spanish chinchilla. The correct English form is chinchilla, spelled C-H-I-N-C-H-I-L-L-A.

Definition

  1. 1
    A small, crepuscular rodent of the genus Chinchilla, native to the Andes Mountains, prized for their very soft fur and often kept as pets.
  2. 2
    The fur of a chinchilla, used for clothing.
  3. 3
    A variety of Persian cat with white fur and green eyes.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. It's important to put a lot of thought into owning a chinchilla since they have a considerably long lifespan of 10 to 20 years. Chinchillas are most widely known for their exceptional fur coat.
  2. Chinchillas inhabit high elevations (3,000–5,000m) of the Chilean Andes Mountains. The chinchillas kept as pet or research animals in North America are all descendents^([sic]) of 13 founders wild caught in 1927.

Etymology

Borrowed from Spanish chinchilla.

This word in other languages

chinchilla(Español)chinchilla(Français)Chinchilla(Deutsch)chinchila(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • cchinchilla
  • chhinchilla
  • chicnhilla
  • chincchilla
  • chinchhilla
  • chinchila
  • chinchilal
  • chinchlila
  • chincihlla
  • chinhcilla
  • chinnchilla
  • chnichilla
  • cihnchilla
  • hcinchilla

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of chinchilla - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

cchinchilla1chhinchilla1chicnhilla2chincchilla1chinchhilla1chinchila1chinchilal2chinchlila2
Edit distance from "chinchilla"

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 "chinchilla"?
"chinchilla" is spelled C-H-I-N-C-H-I-L-L-A. The IPA pronunciation is /t͡ʃɪnˈt͡ʃɪlə/.
What does "chinchilla" mean?
As a noun, "chinchilla" means: A small, crepuscular rodent of the genus Chinchilla, native to the Andes Mountains, prized for their very soft fur and often kept as pets.
What are common misspellings of "chinchilla"?
Common misspellings include "cchinchilla", "chhinchilla", "chicnhilla", "chincchilla", "chinchhilla". The correct spelling is "chinchilla".
How do you pronounce "chinchilla"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "chinchilla" is /t͡ʃɪnˈt͡ʃɪlə/. 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 "chinchilla"?
Borrowed from Spanish chinchilla. 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 "chinchilla", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

charmingly#48,659concubines#48,670depressant#48,697drivetrain#48,713

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (14 here; floor ≥5).

cytotoxic14 variantsBosphorus14 variantsdecathlon14 variantsbishopric14 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list