highbrow

adj

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

"highbrow" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“highbrow” is uncommon English (frequency #58,075 among 2,646 “H” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#58,075
frequency rank, English
2,646
“H” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Intellectually stimulating, highly cultured, sophisticated.

Corpus desk

Index EN-highbrow · highbrow · English

highbrow · rank #58,075 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #58,075
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,646
  • PHOTO-FINISH hexadecimal

Nearest frequency peer: hexadecimal (-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.

Long-tail ranks near “highbrow”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “highbrow” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for highbrow
PropertyValue
Headwordhighbrow
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
Letters8
Frequency rank#58,075
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “highbrow” in English

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).highbrowfalls in this rarity band:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Rare peers in the same band: “hexadecimal” (#58,074), “hillock” (#58,076), “Herbst” (#58,073). Among 2,646 “H” headwords, “highbrow” is #58,075. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

highbrow is uncommon English at frequency #58,075 among 2,646 “H” headwords, classed as anadjective. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Intellectually stimulating, highly cultured, sophisticated.".

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for highbrow, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable English rules. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

Etymologically, the entry records: A compound of the words high + brow, first recorded usage in 1875. Referring to the (by that time discredited) science of phrenology, which suggested that a person of intelligence and sophistication would possess a higher brow-line than someone of lesser in… The correct English form is highbrow, spelled H-I-G-H-B-R-O-W.

Definition

  1. 1
    Intellectually stimulating, highly cultured, sophisticated.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. highbrow entertainment
  2. “He's so darn afraid you'll be offended if he smokes. You scare him. Every time he speaks of the weather you jump him because he ain't talking about poetry or Gertie—Goethe?—or some other highbrow junk. You've got him so leery he scarcely dares to come here.”

Etymology

A compound of the words high + brow, first recorded usage in 1875. Referring to the (by that time discredited) science of phrenology, which suggested that a person of intelligence and sophistication would possess a higher brow-line than someone of lesser intelligence and sophistication.

This word in other languages

intelectual(Español)intello(Français)intellektuell(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.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "highbrow"?
"highbrow" is spelled H-I-G-H-B-R-O-W.
What does "highbrow" mean?
As an adjective, "highbrow" means: Intellectually stimulating, highly cultured, sophisticated.
What is the origin of the word "highbrow"?
A compound of the words high + brow, first recorded usage in 1875. Referring to the (by that time discredited) science of phrenology, which suggested that a person of intelligence and sophistication would possess a higher brow-line than someone of... 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 "highbrow", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Haringey#58,068Huguenot#58,087grounder#58,059Genovese#58,048

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list