experimental

/ɪkspɛɹəˈmɛntəl/

//ɪkspɛɹəˈmɛntəl// adj

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

"experimental" is a 12-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“experimental” has 18 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #4,447. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#4,447
frequency rank, English
2,246
“E” headwords
18
tracked misspellings
4
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Pertaining to or founded on experiment.

Corpus desk

Index EN-experimental · experimental · English

experimental · rank #4,447 · 18 variants · 4 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #4,447
  • LEN-MEGA 12 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 4 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 18 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,246
  • PHOTO-FINISH expanded

Nearest frequency peer: expanded (-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 “experimental”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “experimental” 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

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

experimental vs experiments
83% similar
experimental vs experimentally
86% similar
experimental vs experiment
83% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for experimental
PropertyValue
Headwordexperimental
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ɪkspɛɹəˈmɛntəl/
Letters12
Frequency rank#4,447
Misspellings tracked18
Confusable pairs4
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “experimental”

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).experimentallands here:

#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. Same rarity band neighbours include “expanded” (#4,446), “feeding” (#4,448), “equipped” (#4,445). Among 2,246 “E” headwords, “experimental” is #4,447. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 18 spelling variants around experimental (IPA /ɪkspɛɹəˈmɛntəl/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #4,447 among 2,246 “E” headwords. Wiktionary lists 4 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 18 likely wrong-spelling variants for experimental, with forms such as "epxerimental", "exeprimental", and "expeirmental". 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. It also participates in 4 confusable-pair relationships, "experiments", "experimentally", "experiment", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From experiment + -al. The correct English form is experimental, spelled E-X-P-E-R-I-M-E-N-T-A-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    Pertaining to or founded on experiment.
  2. 2
    Serving to be experimented upon; used in an experiment.
  3. 3
    Serving as an experiment; serving to experiment.
  4. 4
    Experiential, empirical.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Chemistry is an experimental science.
  2. Brown-Séquard, noting that Addison's disease involved the failure of the adrenal (or suprarenal) glands near the kidneys, removed them in experimental animals, and thus proved they were necessary for life […].

Etymology

From experiment + -al.

This word in other languages

expérimental(Français)experimentell(Deutsch)experimental(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • epxerimental
  • exeprimental
  • expeirmental
  • experiemntal
  • experimenatl
  • experimenntal
  • experimentall
  • experimentla
  • experimenttal
  • experimetnal
  • experimmental
  • experimnetal
  • expermiental
  • experrimental
  • expperimental
  • expreimental
  • exxperimental
  • xeperimental

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of experimental - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

epxerimental2exeprimental2expeirmental2experiemntal2experimenatl2experimenntal1experimentall1experimentla2
Edit distance from "experimental"

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 "experimental"?
"experimental" is spelled E-X-P-E-R-I-M-E-N-T-A-L. The IPA pronunciation is /ɪkspɛɹəˈmɛntəl/.
What does "experimental" mean?
As an adjective, "experimental" means: Pertaining to or founded on experiment.
What words are commonly confused with "experimental"?
"experimental" is commonly confused with "experiments", "experimentally", "experiment". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "experimental"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "experimental" is /ɪkspɛɹəˈmɛntəl/. 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 "experimental"?
From experiment + -al. 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 "experimental", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 12 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

photographer#4,474improvements#4,534intellectual#4,310intervention#4,609

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (18 here; floor ≥5).

collaboration18 variantsNetherlands18 variantsconstructed18 variantsinvestments18 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list