pestle

/ˈpɛsəl/

//ˈpɛsəl// noun

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

"pestle" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“pestle” is uncommon English (frequency #50,718 among 4,417 “P” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#50,718
frequency rank, English
4,417
“P” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A club-shaped, round-headed stick used in a mortar to pound, crush, rub or grind things.

Corpus desk

Index EN-pestle · pestle · English

pestle · rank #50,718 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #50,718
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,417
  • PHOTO-FINISH persimmon

Nearest frequency peer: persimmon (-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 “pestle”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for pestle
PropertyValue
Headwordpestle
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈpɛsəl/
Letters6
Frequency rank#50,718
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “pestle” in English

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).pestlefalls in this rarity band:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “persimmon” (#50,716), “photometric” (#50,720), “PHY” (#50,721). Among 4,417 “P” headwords, “pestle” is #50,718. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

pestle is uncommon English at frequency #50,718 among 4,417 “P” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈpɛsəl/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for pestle, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English pestel, pestell, from Old French pestel, from Latin pistillum, from pīnsō (“pound, beat”). Doublet of pistil and pistillum. The correct English form is pestle, spelled P-E-S-T-L-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A club-shaped, round-headed stick used in a mortar to pound, crush, rub or grind things.
  2. 2
    A constable's or bailiff's staff; so called from its shape.
  3. 3
    The leg and leg bone of an animal, especially of a pig.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. She then sat down by the fire, and carefully separated the stone from the pulp, which she burnt; and her next task was to extract the kernel, which she did by means of a heavy pestle and the hearth. The kernels were next crushed together, and placed to simmer over the furnace.
  2. […]whether the chopping-knife or their pestles were the better weapons

Etymology

From Middle English pestel, pestell, from Old French pestel, from Latin pistillum, from pīnsō (“pound, beat”). Doublet of pistil and pistillum.

This word in other languages

mano(Español)pilon(Français)Stößel(Deutsch)pilão(Português)

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 "pestle"?
"pestle" is spelled P-E-S-T-L-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈpɛsəl/.
What does "pestle" mean?
As a noun, "pestle" means: A club-shaped, round-headed stick used in a mortar to pound, crush, rub or grind things.
How do you pronounce "pestle"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "pestle" is /ˈpɛsəl/. 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 "pestle"?
From Middle English pestel, pestell, from Old French pestel, from Latin pistillum, from pīnsō (“pound, beat”). Doublet of pistil and pistillum. 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 "pestle", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

pidgin#50,722pinker#50,723plover#50,724Oviedo#50,711

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list