phylum
/ˈfaɪləm/
"phylum" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“phylum” is an uncommon English word, ranked #62,412 in English word frequency and used as a noun.
- #62,412
- frequency rank, English
- 6
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A rank in the classification of organisms, below kingdom and above class; also called a divisio or a division, especially in describing plants; a taxon at that rank
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | phylum |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈfaɪləm/ |
| Letters | 6 |
| Frequency rank | #62,412 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “phylum” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for phylum is 6 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈfaɪləm/. Corpus data places it at rank #62,412 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
phylum doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable English rules. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Latin phylum, from Ancient Greek φῦλον (phûlon, “tribe, race”). The correct English form is phylum, spelled P-H-Y-L-U-M.
Definition
- 1A rank in the classification of organisms, below kingdom and above class; also called a divisio or a division, especially in describing plants; a taxon at that rank
- 2A large division of possibly related languages, or a major language family which is not subordinate to another.
Etymology
From Latin phylum, from Ancient Greek φῦλον (phûlon, “tribe, race”).
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
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Using “phylum”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is P-H-Y-L-U-M - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈfaɪləm/ (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
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.