cuttlefish

/ˈkʌtl̩fɪʃ/

//ˈkʌtl̩fɪʃ// noun

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

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

The verdict

“cuttlefish” is uncommon English (frequency #51,051 among 5,599 “C” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#51,051
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Any squid-like cephalopods (marine mollusks) of the order Sepiida that have eight arms, two retractable tentacles, and a calcareous internal shell, and can eject a dark ink when threatened.

Corpus desk

Index EN-cuttlefish · cuttlefish · English

cuttlefish · rank #51,051 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #51,051
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH cuneiform

Nearest frequency peer: cuneiform (-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 “cuttlefish”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for cuttlefish
PropertyValue
Headwordcuttlefish
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈkʌtl̩fɪʃ/
Letters10
Frequency rank#51,051
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “cuttlefish” in English

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

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Rare peers in the same band: “cuneiform” (#51,050), “culpa” (#51,049), “Davina” (#51,053). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “cuttlefish” is #51,051. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

cuttlefish is uncommon English at frequency #51,051 among 5,599 “C” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈkʌtl̩fɪʃ/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Any squid-like cephalopods (marine mollusks) of the order Sepiida that have eight arms, two retractable tentacles, and a calcareous internal shell, and can eject a dark ink when threatened.".

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for cuttlefish, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From cuttle + fish. The correct English form is cuttlefish, spelled C-U-T-T-L-E-F-I-S-H.

Definition

  1. 1
    Any squid-like cephalopods (marine mollusks) of the order Sepiida that have eight arms, two retractable tentacles, and a calcareous internal shell, and can eject a dark ink when threatened.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Cuttle-fish, spiced oysters, sea hedge-hogs, and lobsters were among the ingredients of love-potions that reputed thaumaturgist Apuleius [...] was accused of have prepared in order to win the love of a widow.
  2. Fossilised ink sacs are more conclusively known from the extinct “soft-bodied” Coleoidea cephalopods in groups Belemitida (including belemnites with bullet-like internal skeletons commonly found as fossils) and Phragmoteuthida as well as from squid, octopus and cuttlefish fossils.

Etymology

From cuttle + fish.

This word in other languages

jibia(Español)seiche(Français)Tintenfisch(Deutsch)choco(Português)

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 "cuttlefish"?
"cuttlefish" is spelled C-U-T-T-L-E-F-I-S-H. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈkʌtl̩fɪʃ/.
What does "cuttlefish" mean?
As a noun, "cuttlefish" means: Any squid-like cephalopods (marine mollusks) of the order Sepiida that have eight arms, two retractable tentacles, and a calcareous internal shell, and can eject a dark ink when threatened.
How do you pronounce "cuttlefish"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "cuttlefish" is /ˈkʌtl̩fɪʃ/. 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 "cuttlefish"?
From cuttle + fish. 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 "cuttlefish", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

discursive#51,065coincident#51,026cantaloupe#51,011eukaryotes#51,097

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list