irascible
/ɪˈɹæs.ɪ.bəl/
"irascible" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“irascible” is uncommon English (frequency #67,540 among 17,902 “I” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- #67,540
- frequency rank, English
- 17,902
- “I” headwords
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Easily provoked to outbursts of anger; irritable.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | irascible |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | /ɪˈɹæs.ɪ.bəl/ |
| Letters | 9 |
| Frequency rank | #67,540 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “irascible” sits in English frequency
Rare enough to double-check
irascible is uncommon English at frequency #67,540 among 17,902 “I” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed /ɪˈɹæs.ɪ.bəl/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.
irascible has no tracked misspelling variants, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English, from Old French irascible, from Late Latin īrāscibilis, from Latin īrāscī (“to be angry, enraged”) + -bilis. The correct English form is irascible, spelled I-R-A-S-C-I-B-L-E.
Definition
- 1Easily provoked to outbursts of anger; irritable.
- 2Relating to the irascible passions.
Etymology
From Middle English, from Old French irascible, from Late Latin īrāscibilis, from Latin īrāscī (“to be angry, enraged”) + -bilis.
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
How do you spell "irascible"?
What does "irascible" mean?
How do you pronounce "irascible"?
What is the origin of the word "irascible"?
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Using “irascible”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is I-R-A-S-C-I-B-L-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ɪˈɹæs.ɪ.bəl/ (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.