desalinate

/diːˈsælɪneɪt/

//diːˈsælɪneɪt// verb

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

The verdict

“desalinate” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
10
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To remove the salt from something, especially from seawater for use in a domestic water supply

Corpus desk

Index EN-desalinate · desalinate · English

desalinate · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "D" 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.

Key facts for desalinate
PropertyValue
Headworddesalinate
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/diːˈsælɪneɪt/
Letters10
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “desalinate” in English

desalinatefalls outside the top-100,000 ranked English words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

desalinate is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as averb, transcribed /diːˈsælɪneɪt/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "To remove the salt from something, especially from seawater for use in a domestic water supply".

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for desalinate, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

Etymologically, the entry records: From de- + salinate. The correct English form is desalinate, spelled D-E-S-A-L-I-N-A-T-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    To remove the salt from something, especially from seawater for use in a domestic water supply

Etymology

From de- + salinate.

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.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "desalinate"?
"desalinate" is spelled D-E-S-A-L-I-N-A-T-E. The IPA pronunciation is /diːˈsælɪneɪt/.
What does "desalinate" mean?
As a verb, "desalinate" means: To remove the salt from something, especially from seawater for use in a domestic water supply
How do you pronounce "desalinate"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "desalinate" is /diːˈsælɪneɪt/. 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 "desalinate"?
From de- + salinate. 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list