pine nut

/ˈpaɪn ˌnʌt/

//ˈpaɪn ˌnʌt// noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"pine-nut" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“pine nut” 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 May 6, 2026) - The edible seed of any of several species of evergreen pine, especially Pinus pinea, Pinus cembra, and Pinus cembroides.

Corpus desk

Index EN-pine-nut · pine nut · English

pine nut · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-3 3 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 pine nut
PropertyValue
Headwordpine nut
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈpaɪn ˌnʌt/
Letters8
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “pine nut” sits in English frequency

pine nut falls outside the top-100,000 ranked English words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

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

Rare enough to double-check

pine nut is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈpaɪn ˌnʌt/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "The edible seed of any of several species of evergreen pine, especially Pinus pinea, Pinus cembra, and Pinus cembroides.".

pine nut has no tracked misspelling variants, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English pinnote, pynote, from Old English pīnhnutu (“pinenut”), equivalent to pine + nut. Cognate with Swedish pinjenöt (“pinenut”). The correct English form is pine nut, spelled P-I-N-E- -N-U-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    The edible seed of any of several species of evergreen pine, especially Pinus pinea, Pinus cembra, and Pinus cembroides.

Etymology

From Middle English pinnote, pynote, from Old English pīnhnutu (“pinenut”), equivalent to pine + nut. Cognate with Swedish pinjenöt (“pinenut”).

This word in other languages

piñón(Español)pignon(Français)Pinienkern(Deutsch)pinhão(Português)

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.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of May 6, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "pine nut"?
"pine nut" is spelled P-I-N-E- -N-U-T. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈpaɪn ˌnʌt/.
What does "pine nut" mean?
As a noun, "pine nut" means: The edible seed of any of several species of evergreen pine, especially Pinus pinea, Pinus cembra, and Pinus cembroides.
How do you pronounce "pine nut"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "pine nut" is /ˈpaɪn ˌnʌt/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "pine nut"?
From Middle English pinnote, pynote, from Old English pīnhnutu (“pinenut”), equivalent to pine + nut. Cognate with Swedish pinjenöt (“pinenut”). 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.
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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list