lupine

/ˈluː.paɪn/

//ˈluː.paɪn// adj

"lupine" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“lupine” is uncommon English (frequency #75,168 among 2,297 “L” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#75,168
frequency rank, English
2,297
“L” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Wolfish (all senses); wolflike.

Corpus desk

Index EN-lupine · lupine · English

lupine · rank #75,168 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #75,168
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,297
  • PHOTO-FINISH LRB

Nearest frequency peer: LRB (-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 “lupine”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for lupine
PropertyValue
Headwordlupine
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈluː.paɪn/
Letters6
Frequency rank#75,168
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “lupine” in English

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).lupinefalls 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: “LRB” (#75,167), “Luria” (#75,169), “Loughton” (#75,166). Among 2,297 “L” headwords, “lupine” is #75,168. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

lupine is uncommon English at frequency #75,168 among 2,297 “L” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed /ˈluː.paɪn/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

Zero misspellings are on record for lupine in our index, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Latin lupīnus, from lupus (“wolf”) + -īnus (“pertaining to”). Doublet of lupin and piecewise doublet of wolven, Latin lupus being a cognate of wolf and -ine being a doublet of -en. The correct English form is lupine, spelled L-U-P-I-N-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Wolfish (all senses); wolflike.
  2. 2
    Ravenous.

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin lupīnus, from lupus (“wolf”) + -īnus (“pertaining to”). Doublet of lupin and piecewise doublet of wolven, Latin lupus being a cognate of wolf and -ine being a doublet of -en.

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 "lupine"?
"lupine" is spelled L-U-P-I-N-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈluː.paɪn/.
What does "lupine" mean?
As an adjective, "lupine" means: Wolfish (all senses); wolflike.
How do you pronounce "lupine"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "lupine" is /ˈluː.paɪn/. 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 "lupine"?
Borrowed from Latin lupīnus, from lupus (“wolf”) + -īnus (“pertaining to”). Doublet of lupin and piecewise doublet of wolven, Latin lupus being a cognate of wolf and -ine being a doublet of -en. 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 "lupine", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list