# fennel

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈfɛnəl/ · frequency rank #30,417

## Definitions
1. A plant, Foeniculum vulgare, of the parsley family, which has a sweet, anise-like flavor.
2. The bulb, leaves, or stalks of the plant, eaten as a vegetable.
3. The seeds of the fennel plant used as a spice in cooking.

## Etymology
From the Middle English fenel, from the late Old English finuðl, finule (weak feminine forms); fenol, finul (masculine forms), from Proto-West Germanic *fenukl, from the Vulgar Latin *fēnuclum, fēnoclum, from Late Latin fēnuculum, from the Classical Latin faeniculum, a diminutive form of faenum (“hay”); compare the Italian finocchio, the Occitan fenolh, the French fenouil, and the Spanish hinojo. Doublet of finocchio and finook.

## Easily confused with
- **funnel** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fennel-vs-funnel)
- **Finney** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fennel-vs-finney)
- **flannel** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fennel-vs-flannel)
- **feel** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/feel-vs-fennel)
- **Fenn** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fenn-vs-fennel)
- **fence** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fence-vs-fennel)
- **fender** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fender-vs-fennel)
- **fanned** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fanned-vs-fennel)
- **Feeney** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/feeney-vs-fennel)

## Common misspellings (7)
`efnnel`, `fenel`, `fenenl`, `fennell`, `fennle`, `ffennel`, `fnenel`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/fennel