quadriceps
/ˈkwɒd.ɹɪ.sɛps/
"quadriceps" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“quadriceps” is uncommon English (frequency #61,740 among 2,880 “Q” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- #61,740
- frequency rank, English
- 2,880
- “Q” headwords
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A muscle having four heads, especially the large extensor at the front of the thigh.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | quadriceps |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈkwɒd.ɹɪ.sɛps/ |
| Letters | 10 |
| Frequency rank | #61,740 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “quadriceps” sits in English frequency
Rare enough to double-check
quadriceps is uncommon English at frequency #61,740 among 2,880 “Q” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈkwɒd.ɹɪ.sɛps/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "A muscle having four heads, especially the large extensor at the front of the thigh.".
No misspelling variants are generated for quadriceps in our index, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable English rules. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.
Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Latin quadriceps, literally “four-headed”, from quadri- + -ceps, from quattuor (“four”) and from caput (“head”). The correct English form is quadriceps, spelled Q-U-A-D-R-I-C-E-P-S.
Definition
- 1A muscle having four heads, especially the large extensor at the front of the thigh.
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin quadriceps, literally “four-headed”, from quadri- + -ceps, from quattuor (“four”) and from caput (“head”).
Synonyms
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 “quadriceps”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is Q-U-A-D-R-I-C-E-P-S - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈkwɒd.ɹɪ.sɛps/ (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
Other uncommon English words near this rank
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.