cinephile

/ˈsɪnɪfɑɪl/

//ˈsɪnɪfɑɪl// noun

"cinephile" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“cinephile” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
9
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An enthusiast of films and the cinema.

Corpus desk

Index EN-cinephile · cinephile · English

cinephile · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "C" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

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.

Key facts for cinephile
PropertyValue
Headwordcinephile
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈsɪnɪfɑɪl/
Letters9
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “cinephile” in English

cinephilesits beyond the 100,000 most-frequent English words, in the long tail of technical, archaic, or otherwise rare vocabulary where spelling doubt tends to strike hardest.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

cinephile is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈsɪnɪfɑɪl/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "An enthusiast of films and the cinema.".

No generated misspelling entries exist for cinephile in our index, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from French cinéphile, equivalent to cine- + -phile. The correct English form is cinephile, spelled C-I-N-E-P-H-I-L-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    An enthusiast of films and the cinema.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The gulf between cinephiles and the public has grown wide. There are pictures that make a lot of money, but seldom win big Oscars or attract young people to the show
  2. As a film-maker, [Quentin] Dupieux has elicited varying responses: in the US he is often dismissed as a dilettante, whereas in France he has been acclaimed a real-deal auteur, not least in revered cinephile journal Cahiers du Cinéma, which raved about his 2007 debut feature, Steak (“leaves us slack-jawed and wide-eyed”), and devoted a whole section to his…

Etymology

Borrowed from French cinéphile, equivalent to cine- + -phile.

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). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "cinephile"?
"cinephile" is spelled C-I-N-E-P-H-I-L-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈsɪnɪfɑɪl/.
What does "cinephile" mean?
As a noun, "cinephile" means: An enthusiast of films and the cinema.
How do you pronounce "cinephile"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "cinephile" is /ˈsɪnɪfɑɪl/. 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 "cinephile"?
Borrowed from French cinéphile, equivalent to cine- + -phile. 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list