photoreceptive

adj

"photoreceptive" is a 14-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“photoreceptive” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
14
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Absorbing and using light, especially for sensory purposes

Corpus desk

Index EN-photoreceptive · photoreceptive · English

photoreceptive · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 14 letters
  • VOW-6 6 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.

Key facts for photoreceptive
PropertyValue
Headwordphotoreceptive
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
Letters14
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “photoreceptive” in English

photoreceptiveranks outside the top 100,000 English headwords, in the long tail of specialist, archaic, or seldom-used vocabulary, exactly the territory where a reader stops mid-sentence to double-check spelling.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

photoreceptive is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anadjective. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Absorbing and using light, especially for sensory purposes".

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for photoreceptive, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

Etymologically, the entry records: From photo- + receptive. The correct English form is photoreceptive, spelled P-H-O-T-O-R-E-C-E-P-T-I-V-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Absorbing and using light, especially for sensory purposes

Etymology

From photo- + receptive.

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.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "photoreceptive"?
"photoreceptive" is spelled P-H-O-T-O-R-E-C-E-P-T-I-V-E.
What does "photoreceptive" mean?
As an adjective, "photoreceptive" means: Absorbing and using light, especially for sensory purposes
What is the origin of the word "photoreceptive"?
From photo- + receptive. 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list