# physicist

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈfɪzɪsɪst/ · frequency rank #16,772

## Definitions
1. A person whose occupation specializes in the science of physics, especially at a professional level.
2. A believer in the theory that the fundamental phenomena of life are to be explained upon purely chemical and physical principles (opposed to vitalist).

## Etymology
From physics + -ist. Coined by the English polymath William Whewell (1794–1866) in his book The Philosophy of the Inductive Sciences (1840): see the quotation.

## Easily confused with
- **physics** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/physicist-vs-physics)
- **physician** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/physician-vs-physicist)

## Common misspellings (15)
`hpysicist`, `phhysicist`, `phsyicist`, `phyiscist`, `physciist`, `physiccist`, `physicisst`, `physicistt`, `physicits`, `physicsit`, `physiicst`, `physsicist`, `phyysicist`, `pphysicist`, `pyhsicist`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/physicist