leucine

/ˈluː.siːn/

//ˈluː.siːn// noun

"leucine" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“leucine” is uncommon English (frequency #57,517 among 16,425 “L” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#57,517
frequency rank, English
16,425
“L” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - An essential amino acid, C₆H₁₃NO₂, isomeric with isoleucine, found in most animal proteins; it is essential for growth in children.

Key facts for leucine
PropertyValue
Headwordleucine
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈluː.siːn/
Letters7
Frequency rank#57,517
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “leucine” 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). leucine 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

leucine is uncommon English at frequency #57,517 among 16,425 “L” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈluː.siːn/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "An essential amino acid, C₆H₁₃NO₂, isomeric with isoleucine, found in most animal proteins; it is essential for growth in children.".

No misspelling variants are generated for leucine in our index, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

Etymologically, the entry records: Derived from Ancient Greek λευκός (leukós, “white”) + -ine, equivalent to leuco- + -ine. The correct English form is leucine, spelled L-E-U-C-I-N-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    An essential amino acid, C₆H₁₃NO₂, isomeric with isoleucine, found in most animal proteins; it is essential for growth in children.

Etymology

Derived from Ancient Greek λευκός (leukós, “white”) + -ine, equivalent to leuco- + -ine.

Synonyms

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 "leucine"?
"leucine" is spelled L-E-U-C-I-N-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈluː.siːn/.
What does "leucine" mean?
As a noun, "leucine" means: An essential amino acid, C₆H₁₃NO₂, isomeric with isoleucine, found in most animal proteins; it is essential for growth in children.
How do you pronounce "leucine"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "leucine" is /ˈluː.siːn/. 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 "leucine"?
Derived from Ancient Greek λευκός (leukós, “white”) + -ine, equivalent to leuco- + -ine. 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 “leucine”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is L-E-U-C-I-N-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈluː.siːn/ (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.

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

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