medullary

/məˈdʌləɹi/

//məˈdʌləɹi// adj

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

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

The verdict

“medullary” is uncommon English (frequency #76,982 among 4,057 “M” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#76,982
frequency rank, English
4,057
“M” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Relating to a medulla.

Corpus desk

Index EN-medullary · medullary · English

medullary · rank #76,982 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #76,982
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,057
  • PHOTO-FINISH mechatronics

Nearest frequency peer: mechatronics (-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 “medullary”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for medullary
PropertyValue
Headwordmedullary
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/məˈdʌləɹi/
Letters9
Frequency rank#76,982
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “medullary” 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).medullaryfalls 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: “mechatronics” (#76,981), “mendicant” (#76,984), “McLeish” (#76,979). Among 4,057 “M” headwords, “medullary” is #76,982. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

medullary is uncommon English at frequency #76,982 among 4,057 “M” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed /məˈdʌləɹi/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 5 senses are on record.

medullary doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. Our dataset records no confusable match here, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Classical Latin medullāris. By surface analysis, medulla + -ary. The correct English form is medullary, spelled M-E-D-U-L-L-A-R-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    Relating to a medulla.
  2. 2
    Relating to a medulla.
  3. 3
    Relating to a medulla.
  4. 4
    Relating to a medulla.
  5. 5
    Relating to a medulla.

Etymology

From Classical Latin medullāris. By surface analysis, medulla + -ary.

This word in other languages

medular(Español)

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 "medullary"?
"medullary" is spelled M-E-D-U-L-L-A-R-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /məˈdʌləɹi/.
What does "medullary" mean?
As an adjective, "medullary" means: Relating to a medulla.
How do you pronounce "medullary"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "medullary" is /məˈdʌləɹi/. 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 "medullary"?
From Classical Latin medullāris. By surface analysis, medulla + -ary. 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 "medullary", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

mendicant#76,984Michoacán#76,987microglia#76,989maharishi#76,969

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list