perspicuous
/pəˈspɪkjuːəs/
"perspicuous" is a 11-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“perspicuous” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 11
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Clearly expressed, easy to understand; lucid.
Corpus desk
Index EN-perspicuous · perspicuous · English
perspicuous · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-MEGA 11 letters
- VOW-5 5 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "P" thin
- PHOTO-UNK Peer pending
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.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | perspicuous |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | /pəˈspɪkjuːəs/ |
| Letters | 11 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “perspicuous” sits in English frequency
Rare enough to double-check
perspicuous is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anadjective, transcribed /pəˈspɪkjuːəs/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.
We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for perspicuous, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Latin perspicuus, in turn from perspiciō (“see through”). The correct English form is perspicuous, spelled P-E-R-S-P-I-C-U-O-U-S.
Definition
- 1Clearly expressed, easy to understand; lucid.
- 2(Of a language or notation) the process of inference from premises to conclusion is explicitly laid out.
- 3That can be seen through clearly; that lets light through.
Recorded use
Wiktionary exampleThese source excerpts show how perspicuous appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
I am always willing to run some hazard of being tedious in order to be sure that I am perspicuous […]
Etymology
From Latin perspicuus, in turn from perspiciō (“see through”).
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). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of September 3, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.
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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.