cyclocross

/ˈsaɪkləʊˌkɹɒs/

//ˈsaɪkləʊˌkɹɒs// noun

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

The verdict

“cyclocross” is uncommon English (frequency #78,504 among 5,599 “C” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#78,504
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A form of bicycle racing consisting of many laps of a short course featuring pavement, wooded trails, grass, steep hills and obstacles and requiring the rider to quickly dismount, carry the bike wh...

Corpus desk

Index EN-cyclocross · cyclocross · English

cyclocross · rank #78,504 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #78,504
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH cyc

Nearest frequency peer: cyc (-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 “cyclocross”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for cyclocross
PropertyValue
Headwordcyclocross
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈsaɪkləʊˌkɹɒs/
Letters10
Frequency rank#78,504
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “cyclocross” 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).cyclocrossfalls 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: “cyc” (#78,503), “curtly” (#78,502), “Dacca” (#78,506). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “cyclocross” is #78,504. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

cyclocross is uncommon English at frequency #78,504 among 5,599 “C” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈsaɪkləʊˌkɹɒs/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "A form of bicycle racing consisting of many laps of a short course featuring pavement, wooded trails, grass, steep hills and obstacles and requiring the rider to quickly dismount, carry the bike wh...".

Zero misspellings are on record for cyclocross in our index, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable English rules. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: From cycle + -o- + cross (country). The correct English form is cyclocross, spelled C-Y-C-L-O-C-R-O-S-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    A form of bicycle racing consisting of many laps of a short course featuring pavement, wooded trails, grass, steep hills and obstacles and requiring the rider to quickly dismount, carry the bike whilst navigating the obstruction and remount in one motion.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. Roby was an old cyclocross champion from the ’40s, a rugged man built for traversing the bumps and ruts of off-road competition, but he had also ridden in the Tour for several years.

Etymology

From cycle + -o- + cross (country).

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); 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 "cyclocross"?
"cyclocross" is spelled C-Y-C-L-O-C-R-O-S-S. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈsaɪkləʊˌkɹɒs/.
What does "cyclocross" mean?
As a noun, "cyclocross" means: A form of bicycle racing consisting of many laps of a short course featuring pavement, wooded trails, grass, steep hills and obstacles and requiring the rider to quickly dismount, carry the bike wh...
How do you pronounce "cyclocross"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "cyclocross" is /ˈsaɪkləʊˌkɹɒs/. 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 "cyclocross"?
From cycle + -o- + cross (country). 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 "cyclocross", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list