ineffable

/ɪˈnɛf.ə.bəl/

//ɪˈnɛf.ə.bəl// adj

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

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

The verdict

“ineffable” is uncommon English (frequency #58,763 among 2,140 “I” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#58,763
frequency rank, English
2,140
“I” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Beyond expression in words; unspeakable.

Corpus desk

Index EN-ineffable · ineffable · English

ineffable · rank #58,763 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #58,763
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,140
  • PHOTO-FINISH indulges

Nearest frequency peer: indulges (-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 “ineffable”

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

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “ineffable” 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 September 3, 2026
Key facts for ineffable
PropertyValue
Headwordineffable
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ɪˈnɛf.ə.bəl/
Letters9
Frequency rank#58,763
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “ineffable” 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).ineffablelands here:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “indulges” (#58,762), “incrimination” (#58,761), “infuriate” (#58,765). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

ineffable is uncommon English at frequency #58,763 among 2,140 “I” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed /ɪˈnɛf.ə.bəl/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for ineffable, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle French ineffable (modern French ineffable), from Latin ineffābilis, from in- (“not”) + effor (“utter”) + -bilis (“-able”). The correct English form is ineffable, spelled I-N-E-F-F-A-B-L-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Beyond expression in words; unspeakable.
  2. 2
    Forbidden to be uttered; taboo.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Devotion bids aspire to nobler things, to boundless love, and joys ineffable: and such her expectation from kind Heav'n.
  2. Stroeve was trying to express a feeling which he had never known before, and he did not know how to put it into common terms. He was like the mystic seeking to describe the ineffable.

Etymology

From Middle French ineffable (modern French ineffable), from Latin ineffābilis, from in- (“not”) + effor (“utter”) + -bilis (“-able”).

This word in other languages

inefable(Español)ineffable(Français)unaussprechlich(Deutsch)inefável(Português)

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 "ineffable"?
"ineffable" is spelled I-N-E-F-F-A-B-L-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ɪˈnɛf.ə.bəl/.
What does "ineffable" mean?
As an adjective, "ineffable" means: Beyond expression in words; unspeakable.
How do you pronounce "ineffable"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "ineffable" is /ɪˈnɛf.ə.bəl/. 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 "ineffable"?
From Middle French ineffable (modern French ineffable), from Latin ineffābilis, from in- (“not”) + effor (“utter”) + -bilis (“-able”). 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 "ineffable", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

infuriate#58,765ideologue#58,758invective#58,768invoicing#58,769

What to do next

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  • Usage frequency rank #58,763 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
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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