Manichaeism
/mænɪˈkiːɪz(ə)m/
"manichaeism" is a 11-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“Manichaeism” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a proper noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 11
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A syncretic, dualistic religion that combines elements of Zoroastrian, Christian, and Gnostic thought, founded by the Iranian prophet Mani in the 3rd century AD.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | Manichaeism |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Proper noun |
| IPA | /mænɪˈkiːɪz(ə)m/ |
| Letters | 11 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “Manichaeism” sits in English frequency
Rare enough to double-check
Manichaeism is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as aproper noun, transcribed /mænɪˈkiːɪz(ə)m/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.
No generated misspelling entries exist for Manichaeism in our index, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable English rules. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Latin Manichaismus, from Koine Greek Μανιχαϊσμός (Manikhaïsmós), from Μανιχαῖος (Manikhaîos, “Manichaeus”) [from Classical Syriac ܡܐܢܝ ܚܝܐ (Mānī ḥayyā, “Living Mani”), from ܡܐܢܝ (Mānī, “Mani”, the name of its founder) + ܚܝܐ (ḥayyā, “living, alive”)] + … The correct English form is Manichaeism, spelled M-A-N-I-C-H-A-E-I-S-M.
Definition
- 1A syncretic, dualistic religion that combines elements of Zoroastrian, Christian, and Gnostic thought, founded by the Iranian prophet Mani in the 3rd century AD.
- 2A dualistic philosophy dividing the world between good and evil principles, or regarding matter as intrinsically evil and mind as intrinsically good.
Etymology
From Latin Manichaismus, from Koine Greek Μανιχαϊσμός (Manikhaïsmós), from Μανιχαῖος (Manikhaîos, “Manichaeus”) [from Classical Syriac ܡܐܢܝ ܚܝܐ (Mānī ḥayyā, “Living Mani”), from ܡܐܢܝ (Mānī, “Mani”, the name of its founder) + ܚܝܐ (ḥayyā, “living, alive”)] + -ισμός (-ismós). By surface analysis, Manichaeus + -ism. Although Manichaeism is the most widespread spelling in English, it is a hypercorrection. The expected derivation from Koine Greek Μανιχαϊσμός (Manikhaïsmós) and Latin Manichaismus is Manichaism (compare with Judaism, from Ancient Greek Ἰουδαϊσμός (Ioudaïsmós), or with archaism, from Ancient Greek ἀρχαϊσμός (arkhaïsmós)).
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). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Using “Manichaeism”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is M-A-N-I-C-H-A-E-I-S-M - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /mænɪˈkiːɪz(ə)m/ (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
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.