mouthwatering

adj

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

"mouthwatering" is a 13-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“mouthwatering” is uncommon English (frequency #59,564 among 36,575 “M” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#59,564
frequency rank, English
36,575
“M” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - That is pleasing to the sense of taste; appetizing; that makes one salivate.

Key facts for mouthwatering
PropertyValue
Headwordmouthwatering
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
Letters13
Frequency rank#59,564
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “mouthwatering” 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). mouthwatering lands here:

#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

mouthwatering is uncommon English at frequency #59,564 among 36,575 “M” headwords, classed as anadjective. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

No misspelling variants are generated for mouthwatering in our index, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

Etymologically, the entry records: From mouth + watering: causing the nervous system to trigger production and release of saliva. The correct English form is mouthwatering, spelled M-O-U-T-H-W-A-T-E-R-I-N-G.

Definition

  1. 1
    That is pleasing to the sense of taste; appetizing; that makes one salivate.
  2. 2
    Enticing or tantalizing.

Etymology

From mouth + watering: causing the nervous system to trigger production and release of saliva.

This word in other languages

alléchant(Français)lecker(Deutsch)

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 "mouthwatering"?
"mouthwatering" is spelled M-O-U-T-H-W-A-T-E-R-I-N-G.
What does "mouthwatering" mean?
As an adjective, "mouthwatering" means: That is pleasing to the sense of taste; appetizing; that makes one salivate.
What is the origin of the word "mouthwatering"?
From mouth + watering: causing the nervous system to trigger production and release of saliva. 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 “mouthwatering”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is M-O-U-T-H-W-A-T-E-R-I-N-G - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list