sailfish

/ˈseɪlˌfɪʃ/

//ˈseɪlˌfɪʃ// noun

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

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

The verdict

“sailfish” is uncommon English (frequency #71,874 among 6,566 “S” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#71,874
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A fish of the genus Istiophorus, having a characteristic sail-like fin on its back.

Corpus desk

Index EN-sailfish · sailfish · English

sailfish · rank #71,874 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #71,874
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH sagittal

Nearest frequency peer: sagittal (-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.

Long-tail ranks near “sailfish”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “sailfish” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for sailfish
PropertyValue
Headwordsailfish
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈseɪlˌfɪʃ/
Letters8
Frequency rank#71,874
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “sailfish” in English

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “sagittal” (#71,873), “saltiness” (#71,875), “Sandhya” (#71,879). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “sailfish” is #71,874. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

sailfish is uncommon English at frequency #71,874 among 6,566 “S” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈseɪlˌfɪʃ/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

No generated misspelling entries exist for sailfish in our index, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. Our dataset records no confusable match here, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From sail + fish. The correct English form is sailfish, spelled S-A-I-L-F-I-S-H.

Definition

  1. 1
    A fish of the genus Istiophorus, having a characteristic sail-like fin on its back.
  2. 2
    The basking shark (Cetorhinus maximus).
  3. 3
    The quillback (Carpiodes cyprinus).

Etymology

From sail + fish.

This word in other languages

voilier(Français)

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 "sailfish"?
"sailfish" is spelled S-A-I-L-F-I-S-H. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈseɪlˌfɪʃ/.
What does "sailfish" mean?
As a noun, "sailfish" means: A fish of the genus Istiophorus, having a characteristic sail-like fin on its back.
How do you pronounce "sailfish"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "sailfish" is /ˈseɪlˌfɪʃ/. 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 "sailfish"?
From sail + fish. 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 "sailfish", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

sagittal#71,873schnapps#71,888rocketry#71,859seagoing#71,894

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list