palanquin

/ˌpælənˈkin/

//ˌpælənˈkin// noun

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

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

The verdict

“palanquin” is uncommon English (frequency #81,677 among 4,417 “P” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#81,677
frequency rank, English
4,417
“P” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An enclosed human-borne litter or sedan chair, a large box with a chair, couch, or bed raised on horizontal poles and used as a mode of transport.

Corpus desk

Index EN-palanquin · palanquin · English

palanquin · rank #81,677 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #81,677
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,417
  • PHOTO-FINISH Paiute

Nearest frequency peer: Paiute (-2 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 “palanquin”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for palanquin
PropertyValue
Headwordpalanquin
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˌpælənˈkin/
Letters9
Frequency rank#81,677
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “palanquin” in English

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).palanquinfalls 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: “Paiute” (#81,675), “Palumbo” (#81,679), “Pandavas” (#81,680). Among 4,417 “P” headwords, “palanquin” is #81,677. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

palanquin is uncommon English at frequency #81,677 among 4,417 “P” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˌpælənˈkin/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

Zero misspellings are on record for palanquin in our index, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Portuguese palanquim (“Asian litter, litter-bearer”), from Odia ପାଲଙ୍କି (pālaṅki, “litter”), ultimately from Sanskrit पल्यङ्क (palyaṅka), variant of पर्यङ्क (paryaṅka, “bed, couch, litter”). Doublet of palki. The correct English form is palanquin, spelled P-A-L-A-N-Q-U-I-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    An enclosed human-borne litter or sedan chair, a large box with a chair, couch, or bed raised on horizontal poles and used as a mode of transport.
  2. 2
    Synonym of litter, any similar vehicle open or closed, human or animal-borne, particularly (historical) in colonial Asian contexts.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. At the end of two moneths I determined to go for Goa in the companye of two other Portingale Merchants, which were making readye to depart, with two Palanchines or little Litters, which are very commodious for the waye, with eight Falchines which are men hired, to carrie the palanchines, eight for a palanchine, foure at a time...
  2. Behold the hero of the scene, In bungalow and palankeen.

Etymology

From Portuguese palanquim (“Asian litter, litter-bearer”), from Odia ପାଲଙ୍କି (pālaṅki, “litter”), ultimately from Sanskrit पल्यङ्क (palyaṅka), variant of पर्यङ्क (paryaṅka, “bed, couch, litter”). Doublet of palki.

Synonyms

palkiandor

This word in other languages

palanquin(Français)Palankin(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 "palanquin"?
"palanquin" is spelled P-A-L-A-N-Q-U-I-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˌpælənˈkin/.
What does "palanquin" mean?
As a noun, "palanquin" means: An enclosed human-borne litter or sedan chair, a large box with a chair, couch, or bed raised on horizontal poles and used as a mode of transport.
How do you pronounce "palanquin"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "palanquin" is /ˌpælənˈkin/. 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 "palanquin"?
From Portuguese palanquim (“Asian litter, litter-bearer”), from Odia ପାଲଙ୍କି (pālaṅki, “litter”), ultimately from Sanskrit पल्यङ्क (palyaṅka), variant of पर्यङ्क (paryaṅka, “bed, couch, litter”). Doublet of palki. 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 "palanquin", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

padlocked#81,673organelle#81,653novitiate#81,634Provençal#81,724

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list