streptomycin

/ˌstɹɛp.tə(ʊ)ˈmʌɪ.sɪn/

//ˌstɹɛp.tə(ʊ)ˈmʌɪ.sɪn// noun

"streptomycin" is a 12-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“streptomycin” is uncommon English (frequency #84,792 among 54,294 “S” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#84,792
frequency rank, English
54,294
“S” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - An aminoglycoside and bactericidal antibiotic C₂₁H₃₉N₇O₁₂ that is produced by a soil actinomycete (Streptomyces griseus), is active against many bacteria, and is administered via intramuscular inje...

Corpus desk

Index EN-streptomycin · streptomycin · English

streptomycin · rank #84,792 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #84,792
  • LEN-MEGA 12 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 54,294
  • PHOTO-FINISH strawman

Nearest frequency peer: strawman (-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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “streptomycin”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “streptomycin” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of May 6, 2026
Key facts for streptomycin
PropertyValue
Headwordstreptomycin
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˌstɹɛp.tə(ʊ)ˈmʌɪ.sɪn/
Letters12
Frequency rank#84,792
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “streptomycin” 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). streptomycin 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

streptomycin is uncommon English at frequency #84,792 among 54,294 “S” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˌstɹɛp.tə(ʊ)ˈmʌɪ.sɪn/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "An aminoglycoside and bactericidal antibiotic C₂₁H₃₉N₇O₁₂ that is produced by a soil actinomycete (Streptomyces griseus), is active against many bacteria, and is administered via intramuscular inje...".

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for streptomycin, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: From translingual Streptomyces + -in. By surface analysis, strepto- + -mycin. The correct English form is streptomycin, spelled S-T-R-E-P-T-O-M-Y-C-I-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    An aminoglycoside and bactericidal antibiotic C₂₁H₃₉N₇O₁₂ that is produced by a soil actinomycete (Streptomyces griseus), is active against many bacteria, and is administered via intramuscular injection especially in the treatment of infections by gram-negative bacteria. It was the first drug to be successful against tuberculosis but is now chiefly used with other drugs because of its toxic side effects.

Etymology

From translingual Streptomyces + -in. By surface analysis, strepto- + -mycin.

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.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of May 6, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "streptomycin"?
"streptomycin" is spelled S-T-R-E-P-T-O-M-Y-C-I-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˌstɹɛp.tə(ʊ)ˈmʌɪ.sɪn/.
What does "streptomycin" mean?
As a noun, "streptomycin" means: An aminoglycoside and bactericidal antibiotic C₂₁H₃₉N₇O₁₂ that is produced by a soil actinomycete (Streptomyces griseus), is active against many bacteria, and is administered via intramuscular inje...
How do you pronounce "streptomycin"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "streptomycin" is /ˌstɹɛp.tə(ʊ)ˈmʌɪ.sɪn/. 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 "streptomycin"?
From translingual Streptomyces + -in. By surface analysis, strepto- + -mycin. 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 "streptomycin", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 12 letters (nearest by frequency 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