fenugreek

/ˈfɛnjʊˌɡɹiːk/

//ˈfɛnjʊˌɡɹiːk// noun

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

"fenugreek" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“fenugreek” is uncommon English (frequency #85,246 among 18,613 “F” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#85,246
frequency rank, English
18,613
“F” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Any of the species leguminous plant, Trigonella foenum-graecum, eaten as a vegetable and with seeds used as a spice.

Corpus desk

Index EN-fenugreek · fenugreek · English

fenugreek · rank #85,246 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #85,246
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 18,613
  • PHOTO-FINISH Feild

Nearest frequency peer: Feild (-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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “fenugreek”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “fenugreek” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of May 6, 2026
Key facts for fenugreek
PropertyValue
Headwordfenugreek
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈfɛnjʊˌɡɹiːk/
Letters9
Frequency rank#85,246
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “fenugreek” 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). fenugreek lands here:

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

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

Rare enough to double-check

fenugreek is uncommon English at frequency #85,246 among 18,613 “F” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈfɛnjʊˌɡɹiːk/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

fenugreek has no tracked misspelling variants, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. Our dataset records no confusable match here, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English fenygreke, fenegrek, from Old French fenugrec, fengrec, from Latin foenum-graecum, from foenum (“hay”, variant of faenum) + graecum (“Greek”, neuter form of graecus), literally “Greek hay”. The correct English form is fenugreek, spelled F-E-N-U-G-R-E-E-K.

Definition

  1. 1
    Any of the species leguminous plant, Trigonella foenum-graecum, eaten as a vegetable and with seeds used as a spice.
  2. 2
    The seeds of this plant, used as a spice (especially in Indian and Thai cooking).

Etymology

From Middle English fenygreke, fenegrek, from Old French fenugrec, fengrec, from Latin foenum-graecum, from foenum (“hay”, variant of faenum) + graecum (“Greek”, neuter form of graecus), literally “Greek hay”.

This word in other languages

alholva(Español)fenugrec(Français)Bockshornklee(Deutsch)

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.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of May 6, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "fenugreek"?
"fenugreek" is spelled F-E-N-U-G-R-E-E-K. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈfɛnjʊˌɡɹiːk/.
What does "fenugreek" mean?
As a noun, "fenugreek" means: Any of the species leguminous plant, Trigonella foenum-graecum, eaten as a vegetable and with seeds used as a spice.
How do you pronounce "fenugreek"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "fenugreek" is /ˈfɛnjʊˌɡɹiːk/. 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 "fenugreek"?
From Middle English fenygreke, fenegrek, from Old French fenugrec, fengrec, from Latin foenum-graecum, from foenum (“hay”, variant of faenum) + graecum (“Greek”, neuter form of graecus), literally “Greek hay”. 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 "fenugreek", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

filthiest#85,248foretaste#85,260Friedmann#85,263emollient#85,217
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