gneiss
/ˈnaɪs/
"gneiss" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“gneiss” is uncommon English (frequency #64,405 among 18,276 “G” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- #64,405
- frequency rank, English
- 18,276
- “G” headwords
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A common and widely-distributed metamorphic rock having bands or veins, but not schistose.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | gneiss |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈnaɪs/ |
| Letters | 6 |
| Frequency rank | #64,405 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “gneiss” sits in English frequency
Rare enough to double-check
gneiss is uncommon English at frequency #64,405 among 18,276 “G” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈnaɪs/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "A common and widely-distributed metamorphic rock having bands or veins, but not schistose.".
No misspelling variants are generated for gneiss in our index, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.
Etymologically, the entry records: From German Gneis, from Middle High German gneist (“spark”), from Old High German gneisto (“spark”). More at gnast. The correct English form is gneiss, spelled G-N-E-I-S-S.
Definition
- 1A common and widely-distributed metamorphic rock having bands or veins, but not schistose.
Etymology
From German Gneis, from Middle High German gneist (“spark”), from Old High German gneisto (“spark”). More at gnast.
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
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Using “gneiss”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is G-N-E-I-S-S - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈnaɪs/ (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
Other uncommon English words near this rank
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.