saccharin

/ˈsækəɹɪn/

//ˈsækəɹɪn// noun

"saccharin" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“saccharin” is uncommon English (frequency #90,923 among 54,294 “S” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#90,923
frequency rank, English
54,294
“S” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A white, crystalline powder, C₇H₅NO₃S, used as an artificial sweetener in food products.

Key facts for saccharin
PropertyValue
Headwordsaccharin
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈsækəɹɪn/
Letters9
Frequency rank#90,923
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “saccharin” 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). saccharin 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

saccharin is uncommon English at frequency #90,923 among 54,294 “S” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈsækəɹɪn/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "A white, crystalline powder, C₇H₅NO₃S, used as an artificial sweetener in food products.".

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for saccharin, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *ḱorkeh₂ Proto-Indo-Iranian *ćárkaraH Proto-Indo-Aryan *śárkaraH Sanskrit शर्क॑रा (śárkarā) Pali sakkharābor. Ancient Greek σᾰ́κχᾰρ (sắkkhăr) Ancient Greek σάκχᾰρον (sákkhăron)der. Latin saccharon Latin saccharum Proto-Ger… The correct English form is saccharin, spelled S-A-C-C-H-A-R-I-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    A white, crystalline powder, C₇H₅NO₃S, used as an artificial sweetener in food products.

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *ḱorkeh₂ Proto-Indo-Iranian *ćárkaraH Proto-Indo-Aryan *śárkaraH Sanskrit शर्क॑रा (śárkarā) Pali sakkharābor. Ancient Greek σᾰ́κχᾰρ (sắkkhăr) Ancient Greek σάκχᾰρον (sákkhăron)der. Latin saccharon Latin saccharum Proto-Germanic *-inī Proto-West Germanic *-ini Old High German -in Middle High German -in German -in German Saccharinbor. English saccharin From German Saccharin, coined in 1879 by the Russian-born chemist Constantin Fahlberg (1850–1910) who discovered it, from Latin saccharon, saccharum + -in.

Synonyms

E954

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

How do you spell "saccharin"?
"saccharin" is spelled S-A-C-C-H-A-R-I-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈsækəɹɪn/.
What does "saccharin" mean?
As a noun, "saccharin" means: A white, crystalline powder, C₇H₅NO₃S, used as an artificial sweetener in food products.
How do you pronounce "saccharin"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "saccharin" is /ˈsækəɹɪn/. 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 "saccharin"?
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *ḱorkeh₂ Proto-Indo-Iranian *ćárkaraH Proto-Indo-Aryan *śárkaraH Sanskrit शर्क॑रा (śárkarā) Pali sakkharābor. Ancient Greek σᾰ́κχᾰρ (sắkkhăr) Ancient Greek σάκχᾰρον (sákkhăron)der. Latin saccharon Latin saccharum... 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 “saccharin”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is S-A-C-C-H-A-R-I-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈsækəɹɪn/ (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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list