mad-apple
"mad-apple" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“mad-apple” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 9
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - eggplant; aubergine
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | mad-apple |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| Letters | 9 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “mad-apple” sits in English frequency
Rare enough to double-check
mad-apple is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "eggplant; aubergine".
Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for mad-apple, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.
Etymologically, the entry records: Calque of Renaissance Latin malum insanum, itself calqued from Italian melanzana, reanalyzed as if mela insana, perhaps under the influence of beliefs that it could cause various diseases. See further etymology at melongene. The correct English form is mad-apple, spelled M-A-D---A-P-P-L-E.
Definition
- 1eggplant; aubergine
Etymology
Calque of Renaissance Latin malum insanum, itself calqued from Italian melanzana, reanalyzed as if mela insana, perhaps under the influence of beliefs that it could cause various diseases. See further etymology at melongene.
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Using “mad-apple”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is M-A-D---A-P-P-L-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
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.