molybdenum

/məˈlɪbdɪnəm/

//məˈlɪbdɪnəm// noun

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

"molybdenum" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“molybdenum” has 16 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #39,918. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#39,918
frequency rank, English
4,057
“M” headwords
16
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A chemical element (symbol Mo) with an atomic number of 42: a silvery metal, not found as a free element, used in steel alloys.

Corpus desk

Index EN-molybdenum · molybdenum · English

molybdenum · rank #39,918 · 16 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #39,918
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 16 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,057
  • PHOTO-FINISH Moncton

Nearest frequency peer: Moncton (+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 “molybdenum”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “molybdenum” 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
Key facts for molybdenum
PropertyValue
Headwordmolybdenum
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/məˈlɪbdɪnəm/
Letters10
Frequency rank#39,918
Misspellings tracked16
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “molybdenum”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).molybdenumlands here:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “Moncton” (#39,919), “modulate” (#39,916), “Morecambe” (#39,920). Among 4,057 “M” headwords, “molybdenum” is #39,918. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 16 spelling variants around molybdenum (IPA /məˈlɪbdɪnəm/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #39,918 among 4,057 “M” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 16 likely wrong-spelling variants for molybdenum, with forms such as "mloybdenum", "mmolybdenum", and "molbydenum". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: From New Latin molybdaenum, from molybdaena (“any of various substances resembling lead”), from Ancient Greek μολύβδαινα (molúbdaina, “a plummet, piece of lead”), from μόλυβδος (mólubdos, “lead; graphite”), from an Anatolian word cognate with Lydian 𐤪𐤠𐤭�… The correct English form is molybdenum, spelled M-O-L-Y-B-D-E-N-U-M.

Definition

  1. 1
    A chemical element (symbol Mo) with an atomic number of 42: a silvery metal, not found as a free element, used in steel alloys.
  2. 2
    A single atom of this element.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The metals at preſent amount to 21 ; only 11 of which were known before the year 1730. Their names are gold, ſilver, platinum, mercury, copper, iron, tin, lead, zinc, antimony, biſmuth, arſenic, cobalt, nickel, manganeſe, tungſten, molybdenum, uranium, tellurium, titanium, chromum.
  2. Technical terms like ferrite, perlite, graphite, and hardenite were bandied to and fro, and when Paget glibly brought out such a rare exotic as ferro-molybdenum, Benson forgot that he was a master ship-builder, […]

Etymology

From New Latin molybdaenum, from molybdaena (“any of various substances resembling lead”), from Ancient Greek μολύβδαινα (molúbdaina, “a plummet, piece of lead”), from μόλυβδος (mólubdos, “lead; graphite”), from an Anatolian word cognate with Lydian 𐤪𐤠𐤭𐤦𐤥𐤣𐤠 (mariwda, “dark”), from Proto-Indo-European *morkʷ-iyo-, from a root *morkʷ- (“dark”), cognate with English murk. Cf. Latin plumbum nigrum 'lead'. The suffix is + -um (“a chemical element”). Attested since the last quarter of 18th century.

This word in other languages

molibdeno(Español)molybdène(Français)Molybdän(Deutsch)molibdénio(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • mloybdenum
  • mmolybdenum
  • molbydenum
  • mollybdenum
  • molybbdenum
  • molybddenum
  • molybdenmu
  • molybdennum
  • molybdenumm
  • molybdeunm
  • molybdneum
  • molybednum
  • molydbenum
  • molyybdenum
  • moylbdenum
  • omlybdenum

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of molybdenum - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

mloybdenum2mmolybdenum1molbydenum2mollybdenum1molybbdenum1molybddenum1molybdenmu2molybdennum1
Edit distance from "molybdenum"

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 "molybdenum"?
"molybdenum" is spelled M-O-L-Y-B-D-E-N-U-M. The IPA pronunciation is /məˈlɪbdɪnəm/.
What does "molybdenum" mean?
As a noun, "molybdenum" means: A chemical element (symbol Mo) with an atomic number of 42: a silvery metal, not found as a free element, used in steel alloys.
What are common misspellings of "molybdenum"?
Common misspellings include "mloybdenum", "mmolybdenum", "molbydenum", "mollybdenum", "molybbdenum". The correct spelling is "molybdenum".
How do you pronounce "molybdenum"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "molybdenum" is /məˈlɪbdɪnəm/. 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 "molybdenum"?
From New Latin molybdaenum, from molybdaena (“any of various substances resembling lead”), from Ancient Greek μολύβδαινα (molúbdaina, “a plummet, piece of lead”), from μόλυβδος (mólubdos, “lead; graphite”), from an Anatolian word cognate with Lydi... 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 "molybdenum", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 10 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

nonchalant#39,933Panamanian#39,947patterning#39,949pejorative#39,950

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (16 here; floor ≥5).

petitioning16 variantsphonograph16 variantsplanetarium16 variantsincinerator16 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list