spongiform

adj

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

"spongiform" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“spongiform” is uncommon English (frequency #94,280 among 54,294 “S” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#94,280
frequency rank, English
54,294
“S” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Like a sponge, porous, full of holes.

Key facts for spongiform
PropertyValue
Headwordspongiform
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
Letters10
Frequency rank#94,280
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “spongiform” sits in English frequency

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

spongiform is uncommon English at frequency #94,280 among 54,294 “S” headwords, classed as anadjective. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Like a sponge, porous, full of holes.".

spongiform has no tracked misspelling variants, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: Ancient Greek σπόγγος (spóngos, “sponge”) + -iform The correct English form is spongiform, spelled S-P-O-N-G-I-F-O-R-M.

Definition

  1. 1
    Like a sponge, porous, full of holes.

Etymology

Ancient Greek σπόγγος (spóngos, “sponge”) + -iform

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 "spongiform"?
"spongiform" is spelled S-P-O-N-G-I-F-O-R-M.
What does "spongiform" mean?
As an adjective, "spongiform" means: Like a sponge, porous, full of holes.
What is the origin of the word "spongiform"?
Ancient Greek σπόγγος (spóngos, “sponge”) + -iform 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.

Using “spongiform”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is S-P-O-N-G-I-F-O-R-M - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list