formula
/ˈfɔː.mjʊ.lə/
"formula" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“formula” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #3,301 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #3,301
- frequency rank, English
- 7
- letters
- 10
- tracked misspellings
- 5
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Any mathematical rule expressed symbolically.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | formula |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈfɔː.mjʊ.lə/ |
| Letters | 7 |
| Frequency rank | #3,301 |
| Misspellings tracked | 10 |
| Confusable pairs | 5 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “formula” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for formula is 7 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈfɔː.mjʊ.lə/. Corpus data places it at rank #3,301 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 8 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for formula, with forms such as "fformula", "fomrula", and "formlua". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 5 confusable-pair relationships, "formulae", "formulate", "formulaic", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.
Etymologically, the entry records: Learned borrowing from Latin fōrmula (“a small pattern or mold, form, rule, principle, method, formula”), diminutive of forma (“a form”). See form. The correct English form is formula, spelled F-O-R-M-U-L-A.
Definition
- 1Any mathematical rule expressed symbolically.
- 2A symbolic expression of the structure of a compound.
- 3A plan or method for dealing with a problem or for achieving a result.
- 4A formulation; a prescription; a mixture or solution made in a prescribed manner; the identity and quantities of ingredients of such a mixture.
- 5A fixed phrase or set of words intended to be interpreted non-literally, typically used attitudinally or as part of convention; a formulation.
- 6A formal statement of doctrine.
- 7Ellipsis of infant formula, drink given to babies to substitute for mother's milk.
- 8A syntactic expression of a proposition, built up from quantifiers, logical connectives, variables, relation and operation symbols, and, depending on the type of logic, possibly other operators such as modal, temporal, deontic or epistemic ones.
Etymology
Learned borrowing from Latin fōrmula (“a small pattern or mold, form, rule, principle, method, formula”), diminutive of forma (“a form”). See form.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: fformula,fomrula,formlua,formmula,formual,formulla,forrmula,forumla,fromula,ofrmula
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of formula - 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.
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
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Using “formula”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is F-O-R-M-U-L-A - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈfɔː.mjʊ.lə/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “formulae” - see the side-by-side comparison. formula vs formulae
- 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.