# magnesium

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˌmæɡˈniːzi.əm/ · frequency rank #15,215

## Definitions
1. The chemical element with an atomic number of 12. It is a light, easily flammable, silvery-white alkaline earth metal.

## Etymology
From New Latin magnēsium, from Ancient Greek μαγνησία (magnēsía), after Μαγνησία (Magnēsía, “Magnesia”), a region in Thessaly. Coined by British chemist Humphry Davy, as a modification of his original suggestion, magnium.

## Easily confused with
- **magnetism** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/magnesium-vs-magnetism)

## Common misspellings (13)
`amgnesium`, `magensium`, `maggnesium`, `magneisum`, `magnesimu`, `magnesiumm`, `magnessium`, `magnesuim`, `magnnesium`, `magnseium`, `mangesium`, `mganesium`, `mmagnesium`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/magnesium