quincunx

Name: quincunx, English Word Data
Creator: Wiktionary
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

/ˈkwɪŋkʌŋks/

//ˈkwɪŋkʌŋks// noun

By PlainSpell · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) · analyzed May 6, 2026

The verdict

“quincunx” 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) - An arrangement of five units with four forming the corners of a square and the fifth at the centre of the square, a pattern corresponding to the five-spot on dice, playing cards, or dominoes.

Key facts for quincunx
Property	Value
Headword	quincunx
Language	English
Part of speech	Noun
IPA	/ˈkwɪŋkʌŋks/
Letters	8
Misspellings tracked	0
Confusable pairs	0
Source	Wiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “quincunx” sits in English frequency

quincunx 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

quincunx is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈkwɪŋkʌŋks/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for quincunx, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Latin quīncunx. The correct English form is quincunx, spelled Q-U-I-N-C-U-N-X.

Definition

1
An arrangement of five units with four forming the corners of a square and the fifth at the centre of the square, a pattern corresponding to the five-spot on dice, playing cards, or dominoes.
2
An angle of five-twelfths of a circle, or 150°, between two objects.
3
A Galton board.
4
A bronze coin minted during the Roman Republic, valued at five-twelfths of an as.

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin quīncunx.

This word in other languages

quincunce(Español)quinconce(Français)Quinkunx(Deutsch)quina(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.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "quincunx"?

"quincunx" is spelled Q-U-I-N-C-U-N-X. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈkwɪŋkʌŋks/.

What does "quincunx" mean?

As a noun, "quincunx" means: An arrangement of five units with four forming the corners of a square and the fifth at the centre of the square, a pattern corresponding to the five-spot on dice, playing cards, or dominoes.

How do you pronounce "quincunx"?

The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "quincunx" is /ˈkwɪŋkʌŋks/. 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 "quincunx"?

Borrowed from Latin quīncunx. 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.

Using “quincunx”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

The one correct English spelling is Q-U-I-N-C-U-N-X - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
Say it as /ˈkwɪŋkʌŋks/ (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.