ethnocentrism

/ˌɛθ.nəʊˈsɛn.tɹɪzm̩/

//ˌɛθ.nəʊˈsɛn.tɹɪzm̩// noun

"ethnocentrism" is a 13-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“ethnocentrism” is an uncommon English word, ranked #85,231 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#85,231
frequency rank, English
13
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The tendency to look at the world primarily from the perspective of one's own traditional, deferred, or adoptive ethnic culture.

Key facts for ethnocentrism
PropertyValue
Headwordethnocentrism
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˌɛθ.nəʊˈsɛn.tɹɪzm̩/
Letters13
Frequency rank#85,231
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “ethnocentrism” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). ethnocentrism lands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for ethnocentrism is 13 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˌɛθ.nəʊˈsɛn.tɹɪzm̩/. Corpus data places it at rank #85,231 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "The tendency to look at the world primarily from the perspective of one's own traditional, deferred, or adoptive ethnic culture.".

ethnocentrism doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

Etymologically, the entry records: From ethno- + -centrism. The correct English form is ethnocentrism, spelled E-T-H-N-O-C-E-N-T-R-I-S-M.

Definition

  1. 1
    The tendency to look at the world primarily from the perspective of one's own traditional, deferred, or adoptive ethnic culture.

Etymology

From ethno- + -centrism.

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

How do you spell "ethnocentrism"?
"ethnocentrism" is spelled E-T-H-N-O-C-E-N-T-R-I-S-M. The IPA pronunciation is /ˌɛθ.nəʊˈsɛn.tɹɪzm̩/.
What does "ethnocentrism" mean?
As a noun, "ethnocentrism" means: The tendency to look at the world primarily from the perspective of one's own traditional, deferred, or adoptive ethnic culture.
How do you pronounce "ethnocentrism"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "ethnocentrism" is /ˌɛθ.nəʊˈsɛn.tɹɪzm̩/. 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 "ethnocentrism"?
From ethno- + -centrism. 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.

Using “ethnocentrism”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is E-T-H-N-O-C-E-N-T-R-I-S-M - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˌɛθ.nəʊˈsɛn.tɹɪzm̩/ (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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list