madeleine

/ˈmad(ə)lɪn/

//ˈmad(ə)lɪn// noun

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

"madeleine" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“madeleine” has 12 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #16,962. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#16,962
frequency rank, English
4,057
“M” headwords
12
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A French type of small gateau or sponge cake, often shaped like an elongated scallop shell.

Corpus desk

Index EN-madeleine · madeleine · English

madeleine · rank #16,962 · 12 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #16,962
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-MID 12 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,057
  • PHOTO-FINISH Mackay

Nearest frequency peer: Mackay (-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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “madeleine”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “madeleine” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

madeleine vs Madeline
78% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for madeleine
PropertyValue
Headwordmadeleine
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈmad(ə)lɪn/
Letters9
Frequency rank#16,962
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “madeleine”

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).madeleinelands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “Mackay” (#16,961), “MacBook” (#16,960), “malt” (#16,964). Among 4,057 “M” headwords, “madeleine” is #16,962. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 12 spelling variants around madeleine (IPA /ˈmad(ə)lɪn/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #16,962 among 4,057 “M” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for madeleine, with forms such as "amdeleine", "maddeleine", and "madeeline". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 1 confusable-pair relationship, "Madeline", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: Unadapted borrowing from French madeleine, from earlier gâteau à la Madeleine, after the given name Madeleine (“Magdalene”), of uncertain reference: attributed in some sources to a 19th-century pastry cook Madeleine Paulmier, whose existence is now consider… The correct English form is madeleine, spelled M-A-D-E-L-E-I-N-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A French type of small gateau or sponge cake, often shaped like an elongated scallop shell.
  2. 2
    Something which brings back a memory; a source of nostalgia or evocative memories.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. And suddenly the memory revealed itself. The taste was that of the little piece of madeleine which on Sunday mornings at Combray […] my aunt Léonie used to give me, dipping it first in her own cup of tea or tisane.
  2. Madeleine batter can be made in advance and refrigerated.

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from French madeleine, from earlier gâteau à la Madeleine, after the given name Madeleine (“Magdalene”), of uncertain reference: attributed in some sources to a 19th-century pastry cook Madeleine Paulmier, whose existence is now considered dubious. In sense 2, used with reference to the cake's function in the extract below, taken from Marcel Proust's In Search of Lost Time.

This word in other languages

magdalena(Español)madeleine(Français)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • amdeleine
  • maddeleine
  • madeeline
  • madeleien
  • madeleinne
  • madelenie
  • madeliene
  • madelleine
  • madleeine
  • maedleine
  • mdaeleine
  • mmadeleine

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of madeleine - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

amdeleine2maddeleine1madeeline2madeleien2madeleinne1madelenie2madeliene2madelleine1
Edit distance from "madeleine"

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 "madeleine"?
"madeleine" is spelled M-A-D-E-L-E-I-N-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈmad(ə)lɪn/.
What does "madeleine" mean?
As a noun, "madeleine" means: A French type of small gateau or sponge cake, often shaped like an elongated scallop shell.
What words are commonly confused with "madeleine"?
"madeleine" is commonly confused with "Madeline". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "madeleine"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "madeleine" is /ˈmad(ə)lɪn/. 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 "madeleine"?
Unadapted borrowing from French madeleine, from earlier gâteau à la Madeleine, after the given name Madeleine (“Magdalene”), of uncertain reference: attributed in some sources to a 19th-century pastry cook Madeleine Paulmier, whose existence is no... 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 "madeleine", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

moderator#16,973monstrous#16,975prevailed#17,001proactive#17,002

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (12 here; floor ≥5).

Michaels12 variantsmustache12 variantshesitant12 variantsqualifier12 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list