rock salt

noun

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

"rock-salt" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“rock salt” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
9
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The mineral halite.

Key facts for rock salt
PropertyValue
Headwordrock salt
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters9
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “rock salt” sits in English frequency

rock salt 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

rock salt is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

No generated misspelling entries exist for rock salt in our index, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: From rock + salt. The correct English form is rock salt, spelled R-O-C-K- -S-A-L-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    The mineral halite.
  2. 2
    Coarsely ground common salt, often used as road salt, as feedstock, or for other applications.
  3. 3
    Synonym of sea salt, due to its rocky texture.

Etymology

From rock + salt.

This word in other languages

Steinsalz(Deutsch)

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 "rock salt"?
"rock salt" is spelled R-O-C-K- -S-A-L-T.
What does "rock salt" mean?
As a noun, "rock salt" means: The mineral halite.
What is the origin of the word "rock salt"?
From rock + salt. 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 “rock salt”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is R-O-C-K- -S-A-L-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list