perihelion
/ˌpɛɹ.ɪˈhiː.lɪ.ən/
"perihelion" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“perihelion” is uncommon English (frequency #77,080 among 46,516 “P” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- #77,080
- frequency rank, English
- 46,516
- “P” headwords
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The point in the elliptical orbit of a comet, planet, etc., where it is nearest to the Sun.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | perihelion |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˌpɛɹ.ɪˈhiː.lɪ.ən/ |
| Letters | 10 |
| Frequency rank | #77,080 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “perihelion” sits in English frequency
Rare enough to double-check
perihelion is uncommon English at frequency #77,080 among 46,516 “P” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˌpɛɹ.ɪˈhiː.lɪ.ən/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.
perihelion doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.
Etymologically, the entry records: PIE word *sóh₂wl̥ From perihelium (“perihelion”) (obsolete) + -ion (suffix used for other names of apsides). Perihelium is borrowed from Late Latin perihelium, from Ancient Greek περι- (peri-, “around; surrounding”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *pe… The correct English form is perihelion, spelled P-E-R-I-H-E-L-I-O-N.
Definition
- 1The point in the elliptical orbit of a comet, planet, etc., where it is nearest to the Sun.
- 2The highest point or state; the peak, zenith.
Etymology
PIE word *sóh₂wl̥ From perihelium (“perihelion”) (obsolete) + -ion (suffix used for other names of apsides). Perihelium is borrowed from Late Latin perihelium, from Ancient Greek περι- (peri-, “around; surrounding”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *per- (“before, in front; first”)) + ἥλιος (hḗlios, “sun”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *sóh₂wl̥ (“sun”)), which was modelled after perigeum (“point in an orbit about the Earth that is closest to the Earth, perigee”).
This word in other languages
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
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Using “perihelion”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is P-E-R-I-H-E-L-I-O-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˌpɛɹ.ɪˈhiː.lɪ.ən/ (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.