mugwort

/ˈmʌɡwɜːt/

//ˈmʌɡwɜːt// noun

"mugwort" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“mugwort” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
7
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The plant Artemisia vulgaris, family Asteraceae, native to temperate Eurasia and north Africa, traditionally used medicinally.

Corpus desk

Index EN-mugwort · mugwort · English

mugwort · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "M" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

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.

Key facts for mugwort
PropertyValue
Headwordmugwort
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈmʌɡwɜːt/
Letters7
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “mugwort” in English

mugwortsits beyond the 100,000 most-frequent English words, in the long tail of technical, archaic, or otherwise rare vocabulary where spelling doubt tends to strike hardest.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

mugwort is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈmʌɡwɜːt/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for mugwort, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. 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 Middle English mugwort, mugwyrt, mucgwurt, from Old English mucgwyrt, mucwyrt et al., from Proto-Germanic; probably corresponding to midge + wort. Cognate with regional Low German muggart, mugwurz. The correct English form is mugwort, spelled M-U-G-W-O-R-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    The plant Artemisia vulgaris, family Asteraceae, native to temperate Eurasia and north Africa, traditionally used medicinally.
  2. 2
    Any of several aromatic plants of the genus Artemisia native to Eurasia, Africa, and North America.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Mugwort is with good success put among other herbs that are boiled, for women to sit over the hot decoction to draw down their courses, to help the delivery of the birth and expel the afterbirth, as also for the obstructions and inflammations of the mother.
  2. Peony would keep away any kind of storms. Mugwort hung over doorways on Midsummer's Day, June 24, would keep off lightning, as St. John's-Wort would if gathered before sunrise on that day.

Etymology

From Middle English mugwort, mugwyrt, mucgwurt, from Old English mucgwyrt, mucwyrt et al., from Proto-Germanic; probably corresponding to midge + wort. Cognate with regional Low German muggart, mugwurz.

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

How do you spell "mugwort"?
"mugwort" is spelled M-U-G-W-O-R-T. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈmʌɡwɜːt/.
What does "mugwort" mean?
As a noun, "mugwort" means: The plant Artemisia vulgaris, family Asteraceae, native to temperate Eurasia and north Africa, traditionally used medicinally.
How do you pronounce "mugwort"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "mugwort" is /ˈmʌɡwɜːt/. 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 "mugwort"?
From Middle English mugwort, mugwyrt, mucgwurt, from Old English mucgwyrt, mucwyrt et al., from Proto-Germanic; probably corresponding to midge + wort. Cognate with regional Low German muggart, mugwurz. 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list