curlicue
"curlicue" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“curlicue” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 8
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A fancy twisting or curling shape usually made from a series of spirals and loops.
Corpus desk
Index EN-curlicue · curlicue · English
curlicue · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-LONG 8 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.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | curlicue |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| Letters | 8 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “curlicue” in English
Rare enough to double-check
curlicue is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "A fancy twisting or curling shape usually made from a series of spirals and loops.".
Zero misspellings are on record for curlicue in our index, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable English rules. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.
Etymologically, the entry records: From curly + cue. The correct English form is curlicue, spelled C-U-R-L-I-C-U-E.
Definition
- 1A fancy twisting or curling shape usually made from a series of spirals and loops.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how curlicue appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
I put in plenty of curlicues after the figures so that no one could raise the check into $400,000; then I got out my old rattan suit case and put in some clothes.
There was not the slightest use in trying to make its twisty curlicue streets conform to any engineering plan on earth; so those sensible old-time folk didn't try.
Etymology
From curly + cue.
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.