paroxetine

/pəˈɹɒk.sə.tiːn/

//pəˈɹɒk.sə.tiːn// noun

"paroxetine" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“paroxetine” is uncommon English (frequency #97,416 among 46,516 “P” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#97,416
frequency rank, English
46,516
“P” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - An antidepressant that is a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor and is also used for the treatment of anxiety disorders.

Key facts for paroxetine
PropertyValue
Headwordparoxetine
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/pəˈɹɒk.sə.tiːn/
Letters10
Frequency rank#97,416
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “paroxetine” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). paroxetine lands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

paroxetine is uncommon English at frequency #97,416 among 46,516 “P” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /pəˈɹɒk.sə.tiːn/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "An antidepressant that is a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor and is also used for the treatment of anxiety disorders.".

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for paroxetine, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

No borrowing history is documented for this entry, so its spelling is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct English form is paroxetine, spelled P-A-R-O-X-E-T-I-N-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    An antidepressant that is a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor and is also used for the treatment of anxiety disorders.

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 "paroxetine"?
"paroxetine" is spelled P-A-R-O-X-E-T-I-N-E. The IPA pronunciation is /pəˈɹɒk.sə.tiːn/.
What does "paroxetine" mean?
As a noun, "paroxetine" means: An antidepressant that is a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor and is also used for the treatment of anxiety disorders.
How do you pronounce "paroxetine"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "paroxetine" is /pəˈɹɒk.sə.tiːn/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "paroxetine" come from?
"paroxetine" is a English word. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for this and other words across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German on PlainSpell.
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.

Using “paroxetine”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is P-A-R-O-X-E-T-I-N-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /pəˈɹɒk.sə.tiːn/ (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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list