ovum

/ˈəʊ̯.vəm/

//ˈəʊ̯.vəm// noun

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

"ovum" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“ovum” is uncommon English (frequency #60,336 among 1,431 “O” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#60,336
frequency rank, English
1,431
“O” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The female gamete in animals; the egg cell.

Corpus desk

Index EN-ovum · ovum · English

ovum · rank #60,336 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #60,336
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,431
  • PHOTO-FINISH oversimplific…

Nearest frequency peer: oversimplification (-3 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 “ovum”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for ovum
PropertyValue
Headwordovum
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈəʊ̯.vəm/
Letters4
Frequency rank#60,336
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “ovum” 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).ovumfalls in this rarity band:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “oversimplification” (#60,333), “pampers” (#60,339), “overhand” (#60,331). Among 1,431 “O” headwords, “ovum” is #60,336. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

ovum is uncommon English at frequency #60,336 among 1,431 “O” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈəʊ̯.vəm/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "The female gamete in animals; the egg cell.".

Zero misspellings are on record for ovum in our index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Latin ōvum (“egg”). Doublet of egg, ey, huevo, and oeuf. The correct English form is ovum, spelled O-V-U-M.

Definition

  1. 1
    The female gamete in animals; the egg cell.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. Coordinate term: spermatozoon

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin ōvum (“egg”). Doublet of egg, ey, huevo, and oeuf.

This word in other languages

óvulo(Español)ovule(Français)Ovum(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 "ovum"?
"ovum" is spelled O-V-U-M. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈəʊ̯.vəm/.
What does "ovum" mean?
As a noun, "ovum" means: The female gamete in animals; the egg cell.
How do you pronounce "ovum"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "ovum" is /ˈəʊ̯.vəm/. 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 "ovum"?
Borrowed from Latin ōvum (“egg”). Doublet of egg, ey, huevo, and oeuf. 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 "ovum", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 4 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

ordo#60,327mito#60,288mati#60,267Rhyl#60,424

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list