monkfish

Name: monkfish, English Word Data
Creator: Wiktionary
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

/ˈmʌŋk.fɪʃ/

//ˈmʌŋk.fɪʃ// noun

By PlainSpell · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) · analyzed May 6, 2026

The verdict

“monkfish” is uncommon English (frequency #82,555 among 36,575 “M” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#82,555
frequency rank, English: 36,575
“M” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Any large bottom-dwelling anglerfish of the genus Lophius, such as Lophius piscatorius, of the Atlantic, having a large head and mouth.

Key facts for monkfish
Property	Value
Headword	monkfish
Language	English
Part of speech	Noun
IPA	/ˈmʌŋk.fɪʃ/
Letters	8
Frequency rank	#82,555
Misspellings tracked	0
Confusable pairs	0
Source	Wiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “monkfish” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). monkfish lands here:

#82,555

#1#100#1K#10K#100K

← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

monkfish is uncommon English at frequency #82,555 among 36,575 “M” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈmʌŋk.fɪʃ/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for monkfish, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: From monk + fish. The correct English form is monkfish, spelled M-O-N-K-F-I-S-H.

Definition

1
Any large bottom-dwelling anglerfish of the genus Lophius, such as Lophius piscatorius, of the Atlantic, having a large head and mouth.
2
An angel shark, of the genus Squatina.
3
A sea monk (“folkloric creature”).

Etymology

From monk + fish.

This word in other languages

rape(Español)lotte(Français)Seeteufel(Deutsch)tamboril(Português)

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 "monkfish"?

"monkfish" is spelled M-O-N-K-F-I-S-H. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈmʌŋk.fɪʃ/.

What does "monkfish" mean?

As a noun, "monkfish" means: Any large bottom-dwelling anglerfish of the genus Lophius, such as Lophius piscatorius, of the Atlantic, having a large head and mouth.

How do you pronounce "monkfish"?

The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "monkfish" is /ˈmʌŋk.fɪʃ/. 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 "monkfish"?

From monk + fish. 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.

Using “monkfish”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

The one correct English spelling is M-O-N-K-F-I-S-H - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
Say it as /ˈmʌŋk.fɪʃ/ (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

Other uncommon English words near this rank

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.