deuterium

/djuːˈtɪəɹɪəm/

//djuːˈtɪəɹɪəm// noun

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

"deuterium" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“deuterium” has 12 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #43,601. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#43,601
frequency rank, English
3,470
“D” headwords
12
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An isotope of hydrogen with one proton and one neutron in each atom - 21H.

Corpus desk

Index EN-deuterium · deuterium · English

deuterium · rank #43,601 · 12 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #43,601
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-MID 12 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,470
  • PHOTO-FINISH desirability

Nearest frequency peer: desirability (-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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “deuterium”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “deuterium” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for deuterium
PropertyValue
Headworddeuterium
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/djuːˈtɪəɹɪəm/
Letters9
Frequency rank#43,601
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “deuterium”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).deuteriumlands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “desirability” (#43,600), “Dietz” (#43,602), “defibrillator” (#43,598). Among 3,470 “D” headwords, “deuterium” is #43,601. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 12 spelling variants around deuterium (IPA /djuːˈtɪəɹɪəm/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #43,601 among 3,470 “D” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for deuterium, with forms such as "ddeuterium", "detuerium", and "deuetrium". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: From deutero- + -ium. Coined by American physical chemist Harold Urey, from Ancient Greek δεύτερος (deúteros, “second”). The correct English form is deuterium, spelled D-E-U-T-E-R-I-U-M.

Definition

  1. 1
    An isotope of hydrogen with one proton and one neutron in each atom - 21H.
  2. 2
    An atom of this isotope.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Heavy water is "heavy" because it contains deuterium.
  2. There were about 80 deuteriums for every million protiums, and virtually no tritium.

Etymology

From deutero- + -ium. Coined by American physical chemist Harold Urey, from Ancient Greek δεύτερος (deúteros, “second”).

This word in other languages

deutérium(Français)Deuterium(Deutsch)deutério(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ddeuterium
  • detuerium
  • deuetrium
  • deuteirum
  • deuterimu
  • deuteriumm
  • deuterrium
  • deuteruim
  • deutreium
  • deutterium
  • dueterium
  • eduterium

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of deuterium - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

ddeuterium1detuerium2deuetrium2deuteirum2deuterimu2deuteriumm1deuterrium1deuteruim2
Edit distance from "deuterium"

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 "deuterium"?
"deuterium" is spelled D-E-U-T-E-R-I-U-M. The IPA pronunciation is /djuːˈtɪəɹɪəm/.
What does "deuterium" mean?
As a noun, "deuterium" means: An isotope of hydrogen with one proton and one neutron in each atom - 21H.
What are common misspellings of "deuterium"?
Common misspellings include "ddeuterium", "detuerium", "deuetrium", "deuteirum", "deuterimu". The correct spelling is "deuterium".
How do you pronounce "deuterium"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "deuterium" is /djuːˈtɪəɹɪəm/. 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 "deuterium"?
From deutero- + -ium. Coined by American physical chemist Harold Urey, from Ancient Greek δεύτερος (deúteros, “second”). 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 "deuterium", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

dodgeball#43,608Dalmatian#43,591Cristobal#43,585courtesan#43,584

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (12 here; floor ≥5).

darkroom12 variantscysteine12 variantsfirebird12 variantsbutternut12 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list