phthisic
/ˈ(f)θɪzɪk/
"phthisic" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“phthisic” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 8
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A wasting illness of the lungs, such as asthma or tuberculosis; consumption; phthisis.
Corpus desk
Index EN-phthisic · phthisic · English
phthisic · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-LONG 8 letters
- VOW-2 2 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 | phthisic |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈ(f)θɪzɪk/ |
| Letters | 8 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “phthisic” in English
Rare enough to double-check
phthisic is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈ(f)θɪzɪk/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.
phthisic has no tracked misspelling variants, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, 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 tisike, from Anglo-Norman, from Latin phthisicus (“suffering from tuberculosis”), from Ancient Greek φθισικός (phthisikós, “consumptive”), from φθίσις (phthísis, “tuberculosis, consumption”). The correct English form is phthisic, spelled P-H-T-H-I-S-I-C.
Definition
- 1A wasting illness of the lungs, such as asthma or tuberculosis; consumption; phthisis.
- 2Any wasting disease.
- 3A person suffering from phthisis.
- 4Any wasting or shrinking of another body part such as, for example, the eye (phthisis bulbi).
Etymology
From Middle English tisike, from Anglo-Norman, from Latin phthisicus (“suffering from tuberculosis”), from Ancient Greek φθισικός (phthisikós, “consumptive”), from φθίσις (phthísis, “tuberculosis, consumption”).
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.