rimfire

noun

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

The verdict

“rimfire” is uncommon English (frequency #89,840 among 21,470 “R” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#89,840
frequency rank, English
21,470
“R” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A type of firearm cartridge where the primer is in the back rim, rather than a central primer cap. They are cheap to produce but cannot be reloaded with powder.

Corpus desk

Index EN-rimfire · rimfire · English

rimfire · rank #89,840 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #89,840
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 21,470
  • PHOTO-FINISH Rifkind

Nearest frequency peer: Rifkind (-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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “rimfire”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “rimfire” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of May 6, 2026
Key facts for rimfire
PropertyValue
Headwordrimfire
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters7
Frequency rank#89,840
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “rimfire” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). rimfire lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

rimfire is uncommon English at frequency #89,840 among 21,470 “R” headwords, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "A type of firearm cartridge where the primer is in the back rim, rather than a central primer cap. They are cheap to produce but cannot be reloaded with powder.".

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for rimfire, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

Etymologically, the entry records: From rim + fire. The correct English form is rimfire, spelled R-I-M-F-I-R-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A type of firearm cartridge where the primer is in the back rim, rather than a central primer cap. They are cheap to produce but cannot be reloaded with powder.

Etymology

From rim + fire.

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.

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 "rimfire"?
"rimfire" is spelled R-I-M-F-I-R-E.
What does "rimfire" mean?
As a noun, "rimfire" means: A type of firearm cartridge where the primer is in the back rim, rather than a central primer cap. They are cheap to produce but cannot be reloaded with powder.
What is the origin of the word "rimfire"?
From rim + fire. 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.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "rimfire", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list