decimal
/ˈdɛs.ɪ.məɫ/
"decimal" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“decimal” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #20,086 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.
- #20,086
- frequency rank, English
- 7
- letters
- 10
- tracked misspellings
- 4
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Concerning numbers expressed in decimal or mathematical calculations performed using decimal.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | decimal |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | /ˈdɛs.ɪ.məɫ/ |
| Letters | 7 |
| Frequency rank | #20,086 |
| Misspellings tracked | 10 |
| Confusable pairs | 4 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “decimal” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for decimal is 7 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈdɛs.ɪ.məɫ/. Corpus data places it at rank #20,086 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "Concerning numbers expressed in decimal or mathematical calculations performed using decimal.".
Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for decimal, with forms such as "dceimal", "ddecimal", and "deccimal". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 4 confusable-pair relationships, "denial", "dermal", "decal", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.
Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Late Latin, Medieval Latin decimalis, from Latin decimus, from decem (“ten”) + adjective suffix -alis. The correct English form is decimal, spelled D-E-C-I-M-A-L.
Definition
- 1Concerning numbers expressed in decimal or mathematical calculations performed using decimal.
Etymology
Borrowed from Late Latin, Medieval Latin decimalis, from Latin decimus, from decem (“ten”) + adjective suffix -alis.
Synonyms
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: dceimal,ddecimal,deccimal,deciaml,decimall,decimla,decimmal,decmial,deicmal,edcimal
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of decimal - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.
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
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Using “decimal”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is D-E-C-I-M-A-L - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈdɛs.ɪ.məɫ/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “denial” - see the side-by-side comparison. decimal vs denial
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source
Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.