ductile

/ˈdʌk.taɪl/

//ˈdʌk.taɪl// adj

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

"ductile" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“ductile” is uncommon English (frequency #57,988 among 3,470 “D” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#57,988
frequency rank, English
3,470
“D” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Capable of being pulled or stretched into thin wire by mechanical force without breaking.

Corpus desk

Index EN-ductile · ductile · English

ductile · rank #57,988 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #57,988
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,470
  • PHOTO-FINISH draughtsman

Nearest frequency peer: draughtsman (-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 “ductile”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for ductile
PropertyValue
Headwordductile
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈdʌk.taɪl/
Letters7
Frequency rank#57,988
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “ductile” in English

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).ductilefalls in this rarity band:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Rare peers in the same band: “draughtsman” (#57,987), “dower” (#57,986), “Dorcas” (#57,983). Among 3,470 “D” headwords, “ductile” is #57,988. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

ductile is uncommon English at frequency #57,988 among 3,470 “D” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed /ˈdʌk.taɪl/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

ductile has no tracked misspelling variants, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Old French, from Latin ductilis (“easily led”). The correct English form is ductile, spelled D-U-C-T-I-L-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Capable of being pulled or stretched into thin wire by mechanical force without breaking.
  2. 2
    Molded easily into a new form.
  3. 3
    Led easily; prone to follow.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. ductile material
  2. ductile shape

Etymology

From Old French, from Latin ductilis (“easily led”).

Synonyms

flexibleplasticpliantmoldabletractable

Antonyms

brittle

This word in other languages

ductile(Français)duktil(Deutsch)dúctil(Português)

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 "ductile"?
"ductile" is spelled D-U-C-T-I-L-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈdʌk.taɪl/.
What does "ductile" mean?
As an adjective, "ductile" means: Capable of being pulled or stretched into thin wire by mechanical force without breaking.
How do you pronounce "ductile"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "ductile" is /ˈdʌk.taɪl/. 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 "ductile"?
From Old French, from Latin ductilis (“easily led”). 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 "ductile", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

divisor#57,979DeMille#57,974Demeter#57,973Corinna#57,955

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list