ladybird

/ˈleɪ.di.bəːd/

//ˈleɪ.di.bəːd// noun

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

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

The verdict

“ladybird” is uncommon English (frequency #50,635 among 2,297 “L” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#50,635
frequency rank, English
2,297
“L” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Any of the Coccinellidae family of beetles, typically having a round shape and red or yellow spotted elytra.

Corpus desk

Index EN-ladybird · ladybird · English

ladybird · rank #50,635 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #50,635
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,297
  • PHOTO-FINISH Lacoste

Nearest frequency peer: Lacoste (-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 “ladybird”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for ladybird
PropertyValue
Headwordladybird
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈleɪ.di.bəːd/
Letters8
Frequency rank#50,635
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “ladybird” in English

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).ladybirdfalls in this rarity band:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Rare peers in the same band: “Lacoste” (#50,634), “LaBeouf” (#50,633), “landmass” (#50,637). Among 2,297 “L” headwords, “ladybird” is #50,635. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

ladybird is uncommon English at frequency #50,635 among 2,297 “L” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈleɪ.di.bəːd/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Any of the Coccinellidae family of beetles, typically having a round shape and red or yellow spotted elytra.".

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for ladybird, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

Etymologically, the entry records: From lady + bird, the “lady” here referring to the Virgin Mary, Jesus’ mother. Compare German Marienkäfer (literally “Mary beetle/bug”), Danish mariehøne, Latvian mārīte, Macedonian бубамара (bubamara) and Spanish mariquita. Also compare damselfly. The correct English form is ladybird, spelled L-A-D-Y-B-I-R-D.

Definition

  1. 1
    Any of the Coccinellidae family of beetles, typically having a round shape and red or yellow spotted elytra.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. 1914, Entomological Society of America, Annals of the Entomological Society of America, Volume 7, page 81, During this time, they eat about 825 Toxoptera per ladybird, making an average of about twenty-five per day to each ladybird.
  2. 1927, Hamilton Wright Mabie, Edward Everett Hale, and William Byron Forbush (editors), Childhood′s Favorites and Fairy Stories: The Young Folks Treasury, Volume 1, Gutenberg eBook #19993, Lady-bird, lady-bird, fly away home, / Thy house is on fire, thy children all gone: / All but one whose name is Ann, / And she crept under the pudding-pan.

Etymology

From lady + bird, the “lady” here referring to the Virgin Mary, Jesus’ mother. Compare German Marienkäfer (literally “Mary beetle/bug”), Danish mariehøne, Latvian mārīte, Macedonian бубамара (bubamara) and Spanish mariquita. Also compare damselfly.

This word in other languages

mariquita(Español)coccinelle(Français)Marienkäfer(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 "ladybird"?
"ladybird" is spelled L-A-D-Y-B-I-R-D. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈleɪ.di.bəːd/.
What does "ladybird" mean?
As a noun, "ladybird" means: Any of the Coccinellidae family of beetles, typically having a round shape and red or yellow spotted elytra.
How do you pronounce "ladybird"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "ladybird" is /ˈleɪ.di.bəːd/. 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 "ladybird"?
From lady + bird, the “lady” here referring to the Virgin Mary, Jesus’ mother. Compare German Marienkäfer (literally “Mary beetle/bug”), Danish mariehøne, Latvian mārīte, Macedonian бубамара (bubamara) and Spanish mariquita. Also compare damselfly. 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 "ladybird", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

landmass#50,637Klondike#50,629jettison#50,612jalapeño#50,608

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list