pica
/ˈpaɪkə/
"pica" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“pica” is uncommon English (frequency #53,166 among 4,417 “P” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- #53,166
- frequency rank, English
- 4,417
- “P” headwords
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A disorder characterized by appetite and craving for non-edible substances, such as chalk, clay, dirt, ice, or sand.
Corpus desk
Index EN-pica · pica · English
pica · rank #53,166 · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-RARE #53,166
- LEN-MID 4 letters
- VOW-2 2 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-MID 4,417
- PHOTO-FINISH physic
Nearest frequency peer: physic (-1 rank slots)
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.
Long-tail ranks near “pica”
Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter
- phaser
phaser
46,838 corpus weight
- phylogeny
phylogeny
46,837 corpus weight
- physic
physic
46,836 corpus weight
- pica
pica
46,835 corpus weight
- pickpocket
pickpocket
46,833 corpus weight
- pineal
pineal
46,832 corpus weight
What this shows Long-tail view: where “pica” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | pica |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈpaɪkə/ |
| Letters | 4 |
| Frequency rank | #53,166 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “pica” in English
Rare enough to double-check
pica is uncommon English at frequency #53,166 among 4,417 “P” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈpaɪkə/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.
We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for pica, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.
Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Latin pīca (“jay; magpie”). Doublet of pie (“magpie”). * (pathology): From the idea that magpies will eat almost anything. The correct English form is pica, spelled P-I-C-A.
Definition
- 1A disorder characterized by appetite and craving for non-edible substances, such as chalk, clay, dirt, ice, or sand.
- 2A magpie.
Recorded use
Wiktionary exampleThese source excerpts show how pica appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
The three most common nonfood picas were eating of strings and rags; feces, vomit, and urine; and paper, cigarettes, and soil.
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin pīca (“jay; magpie”). Doublet of pie (“magpie”). * (pathology): From the idea that magpies will eat almost anything.
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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Similar English words by spelling shape
Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "pica", not the corpus desk frequency band.
Same letter count
Frequency-ranked English headwords with 4 letters (nearest by frequency rank).