Dravidian
/dɹəˈvɪdɪən/
"dravidian" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“Dravidian” is an uncommon English word, ranked #62,852 in English word frequency and used as a proper noun.
- #62,852
- frequency rank, English
- 9
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A family of related ethnicities and languages primarily in Southern India, Northeast Sri Lanka, and parts of Pakistan and Bangladesh.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | Dravidian |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Proper noun |
| IPA | /dɹəˈvɪdɪən/ |
| Letters | 9 |
| Frequency rank | #62,852 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “Dravidian” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for Dravidian is 9 letters long, classified as a proper noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /dɹəˈvɪdɪən/. Corpus data places it at rank #62,852 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for Dravidian, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Sanskrit द्राविड (drāviḍa) + -ian. *tamiḻ > *damiḷ > damiḷa- / damila- and further, with the intrusive, 'hypercorrect' (or perhaps analogical) -r-, into dr(a/ā)viḍa. The correct English form is Dravidian, spelled D-R-A-V-I-D-I-A-N.
Definition
- 1A family of related ethnicities and languages primarily in Southern India, Northeast Sri Lanka, and parts of Pakistan and Bangladesh.
- 2Any of the languages of these aboriginal peoples; Dravidic.
Etymology
From Sanskrit द्राविड (drāviḍa) + -ian. *tamiḻ > *damiḷ > damiḷa- / damila- and further, with the intrusive, 'hypercorrect' (or perhaps analogical) -r-, into dr(a/ā)viḍa.
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
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Using “Dravidian”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is D-R-A-V-I-D-I-A-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /dɹəˈvɪdɪən/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- 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.