solemn
/ˈsɒləm/
"solemn" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“solemn” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #17,031 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.
- #17,031
- frequency rank, English
- 6
- letters
- 9
- tracked misspellings
- 9
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Of or pertaining to religious ceremonies and rites; (generally) religious in nature; sacred.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | solemn |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | /ˈsɒləm/ |
| Letters | 6 |
| Frequency rank | #17,031 |
| Misspellings tracked | 9 |
| Confusable pairs | 9 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “solemn” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for solemn is 6 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈsɒləm/. Corpus data places it at rank #17,031 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 5 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for solemn, with forms such as "oslemn", "sloemn", and "soelmn". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 9 confusable-pair relationships, "solon", "stolen", "spleen", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English solempne, solemne (“performed with religious ceremony or reverence; devoted to religious observances, sacred; ceremonious, formal; of a vow: made under a religious sanction, binding; religious celebration, celebration of a feast day; fam… The correct English form is solemn, spelled S-O-L-E-M-N.
Definition
- 1Of or pertaining to religious ceremonies and rites; (generally) religious in nature; sacred.
- 2Characterized by or performed with appropriate or great ceremony or formality.
- 3Deeply serious and sombre; grave.
- 4Inspiring serious feelings or thoughts; sombrely impressive.
- 5Cheerless, gloomy, sombre.
Etymology
From Middle English solempne, solemne (“performed with religious ceremony or reverence; devoted to religious observances, sacred; ceremonious, formal; of a vow: made under a religious sanction, binding; religious celebration, celebration of a feast day; famous, well-known; important; grand, imposing; awe-inspiring, impressive; grave, serious; dignified; enunciated or held formally”) [and other forms], from Old French solempne, solemne (“serious, solemn”) [and other forms], or from its etymon Late Latin sōlempnis, sōlennis, from Latin sōlemnis, from sollemnis (“appointed, established, fixed; common, customary, ordinary, ritual, traditional, usual; ceremonial, religious, solemn; festive; annual, yearly”) [and other forms]. The further etymology is uncertain; sollus (“entire, whole”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *solh₂- (“whole”)) + epulum (“banquet, feast”) (in the sense of a ritual; perhaps ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₁ed- (“to eat”)) has been suggested.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: oslemn,sloemn,soelmn,solemmn,solemnn,solenm,sollemn,solmen,ssolemn
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of solemn - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.
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 “solemn”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is S-O-L-E-M-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈsɒləm/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “solon” - see the side-by-side comparison. solemn vs solon
- 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.