sciatica
/saɪˈætɪkə/
"sciatica" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“sciatica” is uncommon English (frequency #55,084 among 54,294 “S” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- #55,084
- frequency rank, English
- 54,294
- “S” headwords
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Neuralgia of the sciatic nerve, characterised by pain radiating down through the buttocks and the back of the thigh.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | sciatica |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /saɪˈætɪkə/ |
| Letters | 8 |
| Frequency rank | #55,084 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “sciatica” sits in English frequency
Rare enough to double-check
sciatica is uncommon English at frequency #55,084 among 54,294 “S” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /saɪˈætɪkə/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Neuralgia of the sciatic nerve, characterised by pain radiating down through the buttocks and the back of the thigh.".
sciatica has no tracked misspelling variants, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.
Etymologically, the entry records: Late Middle English, from Late Latin sciatica, feminine of sciaticus, from Ancient Greek ἰσχιαδικός (iskhiadikós), the adjective of ἰσχίον (iskhíon, “hip”). The correct English form is sciatica, spelled S-C-I-A-T-I-C-A.
Definition
- 1Neuralgia of the sciatic nerve, characterised by pain radiating down through the buttocks and the back of the thigh.
Etymology
Late Middle English, from Late Latin sciatica, feminine of sciaticus, from Ancient Greek ἰσχιαδικός (iskhiadikós), the adjective of ἰσχίον (iskhíon, “hip”).
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 "sciatica"?
What does "sciatica" mean?
How do you pronounce "sciatica"?
What is the origin of the word "sciatica"?
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Using “sciatica”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is S-C-I-A-T-I-C-A - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /saɪˈætɪkə/ (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.