Sapphic
/ˈsæf.ɪk/
"sapphic" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“Sapphic” is an uncommon English word, ranked #92,038 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.
- #92,038
- frequency rank, English
- 7
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Relating to the Greek poetess Sappho from Lesbos or her poetry.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | Sapphic |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | /ˈsæf.ɪk/ |
| Letters | 7 |
| Frequency rank | #92,038 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “Sapphic” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for Sapphic is 7 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈsæf.ɪk/. Corpus data places it at rank #92,038 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
No misspelling variants are generated for Sapphic in our index, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable English rules. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.
Etymologically, the entry records: Sappho (Ancient Greek Σαπφώ (Sapphṓ)) + -ic, whence Latin Sapphicus. Sense related to sexuality alludes to Sappho's poetry discussing love between women (see also lesbian). The correct English form is Sapphic, spelled S-A-P-P-H-I-C.
Definition
- 1Relating to the Greek poetess Sappho from Lesbos or her poetry.
- 2Of a certain kind of verse reputed to have been invented by Sappho, consisting of five metrical feet, of which the first, fourth, and fifth are trochees, the second is a spondee, and the third a dactyl.
- 3Alternative letter-case form of sapphic.
Etymology
Sappho (Ancient Greek Σαπφώ (Sapphṓ)) + -ic, whence Latin Sapphicus. Sense related to sexuality alludes to Sappho's poetry discussing love between women (see also lesbian).
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
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Using “Sapphic”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is S-A-P-P-H-I-C - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈsæf.ɪk/ (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
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.