phlox

/flɒks/

//flɒks// noun

"phlox" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“phlox” is uncommon English (frequency #63,138 among 46,516 “P” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#63,138
frequency rank, English
46,516
“P” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Any flowering plant of the genus Phlox.

Key facts for phlox
PropertyValue
Headwordphlox
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/flɒks/
Letters5
Frequency rank#63,138
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “phlox” 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). phlox 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

phlox is uncommon English at frequency #63,138 among 46,516 “P” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /flɒks/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Any flowering plant of the genus Phlox.".

No generated misspelling entries exist for phlox in our index, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From New Latin Phlox, from Ancient Greek φλόξ (phlóx, “flame”). The correct English form is phlox, spelled P-H-L-O-X.

Definition

  1. 1
    Any flowering plant of the genus Phlox.

Etymology

From New Latin Phlox, from Ancient Greek φλόξ (phlóx, “flame”).

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

How do you spell "phlox"?
"phlox" is spelled P-H-L-O-X. The IPA pronunciation is /flɒks/.
What does "phlox" mean?
As a noun, "phlox" means: Any flowering plant of the genus Phlox.
How do you pronounce "phlox"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "phlox" is /flɒks/. 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 "phlox"?
From New Latin Phlox, from Ancient Greek φλόξ (phlóx, “flame”). 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.

Using “phlox”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is P-H-L-O-X - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /flɒks/ (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