saccharine

/ˈsækəɹaɪn/

//ˈsækəɹaɪn// adj

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

"saccharine" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“saccharine” is uncommon English (frequency #54,453 among 6,566 “S” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#54,453
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 2, 2026) - Of or relating to sugar; sugary.

Corpus desk

Index EN-saccharine · saccharine · English

saccharine · rank #54,453 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #54,453
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH Sakamoto

Nearest frequency peer: Sakamoto (+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 “saccharine”

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

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “saccharine” 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 September 2, 2026
Key facts for saccharine
PropertyValue
Headwordsaccharine
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈsækəɹaɪn/
Letters10
Frequency rank#54,453
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “saccharine” 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). saccharine 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

saccharine is uncommon English at frequency #54,453 among 6,566 “S” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed /ˈsækəɹaɪn/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.

saccharine has no tracked misspelling variants, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From New Latin saccharum (“sugar”) + English -ine (suffix meaning ‘of or pertaining to’ forming adjectives). Saccharum is derived from saccharon (“syrupy liquid from bamboo or reeds”), from Ancient Greek σάκχαρον (sákkharon), from Pali sakkharā (“sugar; gra… The correct English form is saccharine, spelled S-A-C-C-H-A-R-I-N-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Of or relating to sugar; sugary.
  2. 2
    Containing a large or excessive amount of sugar.
  3. 3
    Excessively sweet in action or disposition, especially if romantic or sentimental to the point of ridiculousness; sickly sweet, syrupy.
  4. 4
    Resembling granulated sugar; saccharoid.

Etymology

From New Latin saccharum (“sugar”) + English -ine (suffix meaning ‘of or pertaining to’ forming adjectives). Saccharum is derived from saccharon (“syrupy liquid from bamboo or reeds”), from Ancient Greek σάκχαρον (sákkharon), from Pali sakkharā (“sugar; gravel; granule, grain; crystal; potsherd”), from Sanskrit शर्करा (śárkarā, “ground or candied sugar; cotton sugar, sugarmaple; gravel, grit, pebbles; potsherd”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ḱorkeh₂ (“boulder; gravel”).

This word in other languages

sacarino(Español)cucul la praline(Français)süßlich(Deutsch)

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 September 2, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "saccharine"?
"saccharine" is spelled S-A-C-C-H-A-R-I-N-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈsækəɹaɪn/.
What does "saccharine" mean?
As an adjective, "saccharine" means: Of or relating to sugar; sugary.
How do you pronounce "saccharine"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "saccharine" is /ˈsækəɹaɪn/. 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 "saccharine"?
From New Latin saccharum (“sugar”) + English -ine (suffix meaning ‘of or pertaining to’ forming adjectives). Saccharum is derived from saccharon (“syrupy liquid from bamboo or reeds”), from Ancient Greek σάκχαρον (sákkharon), from Pali sakkharā (“... 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 "saccharine", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 10 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

refraining#54,432slanderous#54,488psilocybin#54,416protrusion#54,413
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