sternal

Name: sternal, English Word Data
Creator: Wiktionary
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

/ˈstɜː.nəl/

//ˈstɜː.nəl// adj

By PlainSpell · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) · analyzed May 6, 2026

The verdict

“sternal” is uncommon English (frequency #89,947 among 54,294 “S” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#89,947
frequency rank, English: 54,294
“S” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Of, relating to, or near the sternum.

Key facts for sternal
Property	Value
Headword	sternal
Language	English
Part of speech	Adjective
IPA	/ˈstɜː.nəl/
Letters	7
Frequency rank	#89,947
Misspellings tracked	0
Confusable pairs	0
Source	Wiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “sternal” 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). sternal lands here:

#89,947

#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

sternal is uncommon English at frequency #89,947 among 54,294 “S” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed /ˈstɜː.nəl/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Of, relating to, or near the sternum.".

sternal doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. Our dataset records no confusable match here, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: From sternum + -al. The correct English form is sternal, spelled S-T-E-R-N-A-L.

Definition

1
Of, relating to, or near the sternum.

Etymology

From sternum + -al.

This word in other languages

sternal(Français)

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 "sternal"?

"sternal" is spelled S-T-E-R-N-A-L. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈstɜː.nəl/.

What does "sternal" mean?

As an adjective, "sternal" means: Of, relating to, or near the sternum.

How do you pronounce "sternal"?

The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "sternal" is /ˈstɜː.nəl/. 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 "sternal"?

From sternum + -al. 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 “sternal”

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

The one correct English spelling is S-T-E-R-N-A-L - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
Say it as /ˈstɜː.nəl/ (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.