ciprofloxacin

/ˌsɪp.ɹəˈflɑk.səs.ɪn/

//ˌsɪp.ɹəˈflɑk.səs.ɪn// noun

"ciprofloxacin" is a 13-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“ciprofloxacin” is uncommon English (frequency #84,102 among 5,599 “C” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#84,102
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A broad-spectrum fluoroquinolone antibiotic C₁₇H₁₈FN₃O₃ that is often administered in the form of its hydrochloride C₁₇H₁₈FN₃O₃·HCl and is effective especially against gram-negative bacteria.

Corpus desk

Index EN-ciprofloxacin · ciprofloxacin · English

ciprofloxacin · rank #84,102 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #84,102
  • LEN-MEGA 13 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH cienega

Nearest frequency peer: cienega (-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 “ciprofloxacin”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for ciprofloxacin
PropertyValue
Headwordciprofloxacin
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˌsɪp.ɹəˈflɑk.səs.ɪn/
Letters13
Frequency rank#84,102
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “ciprofloxacin” 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).ciprofloxacinfalls in this rarity band:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “cienega” (#84,101), “Clayton's” (#84,104), “Choudhary” (#84,098). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “ciprofloxacin” is #84,102. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

ciprofloxacin is uncommon English at frequency #84,102 among 5,599 “C” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˌsɪp.ɹəˈflɑk.səs.ɪn/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "A broad-spectrum fluoroquinolone antibiotic C₁₇H₁₈FN₃O₃ that is often administered in the form of its hydrochloride C₁₇H₁₈FN₃O₃·HCl and is effective especially against gram-negative bacteria.".

Zero misspellings are on record for ciprofloxacin in our index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From cy(clo)pro(pyl) + -floxacin (“nalidixic acid derivative”). The correct English form is ciprofloxacin, spelled C-I-P-R-O-F-L-O-X-A-C-I-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    A broad-spectrum fluoroquinolone antibiotic C₁₇H₁₈FN₃O₃ that is often administered in the form of its hydrochloride C₁₇H₁₈FN₃O₃·HCl and is effective especially against gram-negative bacteria.

Etymology

From cy(clo)pro(pyl) + -floxacin (“nalidixic acid derivative”).

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 "ciprofloxacin"?
"ciprofloxacin" is spelled C-I-P-R-O-F-L-O-X-A-C-I-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˌsɪp.ɹəˈflɑk.səs.ɪn/.
What does "ciprofloxacin" mean?
As a noun, "ciprofloxacin" means: A broad-spectrum fluoroquinolone antibiotic C₁₇H₁₈FN₃O₃ that is often administered in the form of its hydrochloride C₁₇H₁₈FN₃O₃·HCl and is effective especially against gram-negative bacteria.
How do you pronounce "ciprofloxacin"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "ciprofloxacin" is /ˌsɪp.ɹəˈflɑk.səs.ɪn/. 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 "ciprofloxacin"?
From cy(clo)pro(pyl) + -floxacin (“nalidixic acid derivative”). 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 "ciprofloxacin", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 13 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list