nonpareil

/nɒnpəˈɹeɪ(l)/

//nɒnpəˈɹeɪ(l)// adj

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

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

The verdict

“nonpareil” is uncommon English (frequency #86,574 among 1,534 “N” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#86,574
frequency rank, English
1,534
“N” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Unequalled, unrivalled; unique.

Corpus desk

Index EN-nonpareil · nonpareil · English

nonpareil · rank #86,574 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #86,574
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,534
  • PHOTO-FINISH norther

Nearest frequency peer: norther (+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 “nonpareil”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for nonpareil
PropertyValue
Headwordnonpareil
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/nɒnpəˈɹeɪ(l)/
Letters9
Frequency rank#86,574
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “nonpareil” 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).nonpareilfalls 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: “norther” (#86,575), “Niya” (#86,570), “Niamey” (#86,568). Among 1,534 “N” headwords, “nonpareil” is #86,574. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

nonpareil is uncommon English at frequency #86,574 among 1,534 “N” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed /nɒnpəˈɹeɪ(l)/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Unequalled, unrivalled; unique.".

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for nonpareil, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Late Middle English non-parail (“unparalleled, nonpareil”) [and other forms], from Middle French nonpareille, nonpareil (“unparalleled”) (obsolete), from non- (prefix meaning ‘not’) + pareil (“alike, like, same”). Pareil is derived from Old French pare… The correct English form is nonpareil, spelled N-O-N-P-A-R-E-I-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    Unequalled, unrivalled; unique.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. He informed the clerk that he would remain three or four days, inquired concerning the sailing of European steamships, and sank into the blissful inanition of the nonpareil hotel with the contented air of a traveller in his favorite inn.
  2. A veritable artist, possessed of a deftness nonpareil with cotton swab and evacuation-hypo, the medical attaché is known among the shrinking upper classes of petro-Arab nations as the DeBakey of maxillofacial yeast […]

Etymology

From Late Middle English non-parail (“unparalleled, nonpareil”) [and other forms], from Middle French nonpareille, nonpareil (“unparalleled”) (obsolete), from non- (prefix meaning ‘not’) + pareil (“alike, like, same”). Pareil is derived from Old French pareil, from Late Latin pāriculus (“equal; like; of a number: even”), from Latin pār (“equal; like; of a number: even; suitable”) + -culus (a variant of -ulus (suffix forming diminutives)). Doublet of umpire. Noun sense 4 (size of type standardized at 6-point) is usually taken to derive from the attractive type cut by the brothers Giovanni and Gregorio De Gregori (fl. 1482–1503 and 1496–1527 respectively) for their 1498 edition of the divine offices in Venice; it was for a long time the smallest-sized type in use.

This word in other languages

incomparable(Español)nonpareil(Français)unerreicht(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 "nonpareil"?
"nonpareil" is spelled N-O-N-P-A-R-E-I-L. The IPA pronunciation is /nɒnpəˈɹeɪ(l)/.
What does "nonpareil" mean?
As an adjective, "nonpareil" means: Unequalled, unrivalled; unique.
How do you pronounce "nonpareil"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "nonpareil" is /nɒnpəˈɹeɪ(l)/. 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 "nonpareil"?
From Late Middle English non-parail (“unparalleled, nonpareil”) [and other forms], from Middle French nonpareille, nonpareil (“unparalleled”) (obsolete), from non- (prefix meaning ‘not’) + pareil (“alike, like, same”). Pareil is derived from Old F... 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 "nonpareil", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

nectarine#86,560officious#86,589monoplane#86,529petulance#86,627

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list