Paracelsus
/ˌpæɹəˈsɛlsəs/
"paracelsus" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“Paracelsus” is uncommon English (frequency #75,270 among 46,516 “P” headwords), classed as a proper noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- #75,270
- frequency rank, English
- 46,516
- “P” headwords
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The adopted name of Philippus von Hohenheim, a Swiss thinker of the 16th century known for his pioneering scientific work and his research into the occult and alchemy.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | Paracelsus |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Proper noun |
| IPA | /ˌpæɹəˈsɛlsəs/ |
| Letters | 10 |
| Frequency rank | #75,270 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “Paracelsus” sits in English frequency
Rare enough to double-check
Paracelsus is uncommon English at frequency #75,270 among 46,516 “P” headwords, classed as aproper noun, transcribed /ˌpæɹəˈsɛlsəs/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "The adopted name of Philippus von Hohenheim, a Swiss thinker of the 16th century known for his pioneering scientific work and his research into the occult and alchemy.".
We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for Paracelsus, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.
Etymologically, the entry records: Coined before 1529, possibly before 1524. The name was likely a latinization based on celsus (“high, tall”) as a calque of German Hohenheim. However, it was interpreted as the claim of "surpassing (παρά) Celsus" from an early time. The correct English form is Paracelsus, spelled P-A-R-A-C-E-L-S-U-S.
Definition
- 1The adopted name of Philippus von Hohenheim, a Swiss thinker of the 16th century known for his pioneering scientific work and his research into the occult and alchemy.
Etymology
Coined before 1529, possibly before 1524. The name was likely a latinization based on celsus (“high, tall”) as a calque of German Hohenheim. However, it was interpreted as the claim of "surpassing (παρά) Celsus" from an early time.
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 "Paracelsus"?
What does "Paracelsus" mean?
How do you pronounce "Paracelsus"?
What is the origin of the word "Paracelsus"?
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Using “Paracelsus”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is P-A-R-A-C-E-L-S-U-S - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˌpæɹəˈsɛlsəs/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- 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.