hypersonic

adj

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

"hypersonic" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“hypersonic” is uncommon English (frequency #51,169 among 23,837 “H” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#51,169
frequency rank, English
23,837
“H” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Of a speed, equal to, or greater than, or capable of achieving, five times the speed of sound.

Key facts for hypersonic
PropertyValue
Headwordhypersonic
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
Letters10
Frequency rank#51,169
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “hypersonic” 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). hypersonic 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

hypersonic is uncommon English at frequency #51,169 among 23,837 “H” headwords, classed as anadjective. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for hypersonic, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. Our dataset records no confusable match here, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

Etymologically, the entry records: From hyper- + sonic. Doublet of supersonic. The correct English form is hypersonic, spelled H-Y-P-E-R-S-O-N-I-C.

Definition

  1. 1
    Of a speed, equal to, or greater than, or capable of achieving, five times the speed of sound.
  2. 2
    Of a speed, far enough above the speed of sound as to cause significant differences in behaviour due to chemical reactions or dissociation of the air.

Etymology

From hyper- + sonic. Doublet of supersonic.

This word in other languages

hipersónico(Español)hypersonique(Français)

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 "hypersonic"?
"hypersonic" is spelled H-Y-P-E-R-S-O-N-I-C.
What does "hypersonic" mean?
As an adjective, "hypersonic" means: Of a speed, equal to, or greater than, or capable of achieving, five times the speed of sound.
What is the origin of the word "hypersonic"?
From hyper- + sonic. Doublet of supersonic. 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.

Using “hypersonic”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is H-Y-P-E-R-S-O-N-I-C - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list