rosemary

/ˈɹəʊzməɹi/

//ˈɹəʊzməɹi// noun

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

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

The verdict

“rosemary” has 12 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #13,596. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#13,596
frequency rank, English
3,094
“R” headwords
12
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A shrub, Salvia rosmarinus (formerly Rosmarinus officinalis), that originates from Europe and Asia Minor and produces a fragrant herb used in cooking and perfumes.

Corpus desk

Index EN-rosemary · rosemary · English

rosemary · rank #13,596 · 12 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #13,596
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-MID 12 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,094
  • PHOTO-FINISH ripping

Nearest frequency peer: ripping (-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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “rosemary”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “rosemary” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

rosemary vs rosary
75% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for rosemary
PropertyValue
Headwordrosemary
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈɹəʊzməɹi/
Letters8
Frequency rank#13,596
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “rosemary”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).rosemarylands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “ripping” (#13,595), “rubbed” (#13,597), “riches” (#13,594). Among 3,094 “R” headwords, “rosemary” is #13,596. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 12 spelling variants around rosemary (IPA /ˈɹəʊzməɹi/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #13,596 among 3,094 “R” headwords. Dominant gloss: "A shrub, Salvia rosmarinus (formerly Rosmarinus officinalis), that originates from Europe and Asia Minor and produces a fragrant herb used in cooking and perfumes.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for rosemary, with forms such as "orsemary", "roesmary", and "roseamry". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 1 confusable-pair relationship, "rosary", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English rosmary, rosemarye, alteration (based on rose + Mary) of earlier Middle English rosmarine, rosemaryn, partly from Old French rosmarin, partly directly from Latin rōsmarīnus (“rosemary”), from rōs (“dew, moisture”) + marīnus (“marine, of … The correct English form is rosemary, spelled R-O-S-E-M-A-R-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    A shrub, Salvia rosmarinus (formerly Rosmarinus officinalis), that originates from Europe and Asia Minor and produces a fragrant herb used in cooking and perfumes.

Etymology

From Middle English rosmary, rosemarye, alteration (based on rose + Mary) of earlier Middle English rosmarine, rosemaryn, partly from Old French rosmarin, partly directly from Latin rōsmarīnus (“rosemary”), from rōs (“dew, moisture”) + marīnus (“marine, of the sea”).

Synonyms

rosmarine

This word in other languages

romero(Español)romarin(Français)Rosmarin(Deutsch)alecrim(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • orsemary
  • roesmary
  • roseamry
  • rosemarry
  • rosemaryy
  • rosemayr
  • rosemmary
  • rosemray
  • rosmeary
  • rossemary
  • rrosemary
  • rsoemary

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of rosemary - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

orsemary2roesmary2roseamry2rosemarry1rosemaryy1rosemayr2rosemmary1rosemray2
Edit distance from "rosemary"

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

How do you spell "rosemary"?
"rosemary" is spelled R-O-S-E-M-A-R-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɹəʊzməɹi/.
What does "rosemary" mean?
As a noun, "rosemary" means: A shrub, Salvia rosmarinus (formerly Rosmarinus officinalis), that originates from Europe and Asia Minor and produces a fragrant herb used in cooking and perfumes.
What words are commonly confused with "rosemary"?
"rosemary" is commonly confused with "rosary". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "rosemary"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "rosemary" is /ˈɹəʊzməɹi/. 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 "rosemary"?
From Middle English rosmary, rosemarye, alteration (based on rose + Mary) of earlier Middle English rosmarine, rosemaryn, partly from Old French rosmarin, partly directly from Latin rōsmarīnus (“rosemary”), from rōs (“dew, moisture”) + marīnus (“m... 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 "rosemary", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

pounding#13,587piercing#13,584shameful#13,608shortest#13,609

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (12 here; floor ≥5).

poisonous12 variantsMariners12 variantsmajestic12 variantsupsetting12 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list