spinach

/ˈspɪnɪt͡ʃ/

//ˈspɪnɪt͡ʃ// noun

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

"spinach" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“spinach” has 11 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #15,514. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#15,514
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
11
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A particular edible plant, Spinacia oleracea, or its leaves.

Corpus desk

Index EN-spinach · spinach · English

spinach · rank #15,514 · 11 variants · 2 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #15,514
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 2 pairs
  • VAR-MID 11 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH speculate

Nearest frequency peer: speculate (-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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “spinach”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “spinach” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

spinach vs spinal
71% similar
spinach vs spina
71% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for spinach
PropertyValue
Headwordspinach
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈspɪnɪt͡ʃ/
Letters7
Frequency rank#15,514
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “spinach”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).spinachlands here:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “speculate” (#15,513), “squat” (#15,515), “sparrow” (#15,512). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “spinach” is #15,514. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 11 spelling variants around spinach (IPA /ˈspɪnɪt͡ʃ/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #15,514 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for spinach, with forms such as "psinach", "sipnach", and "spianch". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 2 confusable-pair relationships, "spinal", "spina", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English spinach, from Anglo-Norman spinache, from Old French espinoche, from Old Occitan espinarc, from Arabic إِسْفَانَاخ (ʔisfānāḵ), from Classical Persian اسپناخ (ispanāx, ispināx). The correct English form is spinach, spelled S-P-I-N-A-C-H.

Definition

  1. 1
    A particular edible plant, Spinacia oleracea, or its leaves.
  2. 2
    Any of numerous plants, or their leaves, which are used for greens in the same way Spinacia oleracea is or resemble it in some way.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

These source excerpts show how spinach appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. Another option is to wash spinach and other leafy greens thoroughly in running water before eating them.

Etymology

From Middle English spinach, from Anglo-Norman spinache, from Old French espinoche, from Old Occitan espinarc, from Arabic إِسْفَانَاخ (ʔisfānāḵ), from Classical Persian اسپناخ (ispanāx, ispināx).

This word in other languages

espinaca(Español)épinards(Français)Spinat(Deutsch)espinafre(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • psinach
  • sipnach
  • spianch
  • spinacch
  • spinachh
  • spinahc
  • spincah
  • spinnach
  • spniach
  • sppinach
  • sspinach

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of spinach - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

psinach2sipnach2spianch2spinacch1spinachh1spinahc2spincah2spinnach1
Edit distance from "spinach"

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 "spinach"?
"spinach" is spelled S-P-I-N-A-C-H. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈspɪnɪt͡ʃ/.
What does "spinach" mean?
As a noun, "spinach" means: A particular edible plant, Spinacia oleracea, or its leaves.
What words are commonly confused with "spinach"?
"spinach" is commonly confused with "spinal", "spina". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "spinach"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "spinach" is /ˈspɪnɪt͡ʃ/. 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 "spinach"?
From Middle English spinach, from Anglo-Norman spinache, from Old French espinoche, from Old Occitan espinarc, from Arabic إِسْفَانَاخ (ʔisfānāḵ), from Classical Persian اسپناخ (ispanāx, ispināx). 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 "spinach", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

sparrow#15,512Strauss#15,519shutter#15,507styling#15,521

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (11 here; floor ≥5).

unnatural11 variantsupfront11 variantswrestle11 variantspickles11 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list