subhuman

[sʌbˈhjuːmən]

/[sʌbˈhjuːmən]/ adj

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

"subhuman" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“subhuman” is uncommon English (frequency #61,141 among 6,566 “S” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#61,141
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Lacking characteristics of a human in a way judged to be less than human by some value judgment, opinion, or belief system (as for example an anthropocentric view of nonhuman primates or a Nazi vie...

Corpus desk

Index EN-subhuman · subhuman · English

subhuman · rank #61,141 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #61,141
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH Suzette

Nearest frequency peer: Suzette (+2 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 “subhuman”

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

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “subhuman” 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 September 3, 2026
Key facts for subhuman
PropertyValue
Headwordsubhuman
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA[sʌbˈhjuːmən]
Letters8
Frequency rank#61,141
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “subhuman” 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). subhuman 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

subhuman is uncommon English at frequency #61,141 among 6,566 “S” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed [sʌbˈhjuːmən]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for subhuman, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From sub- + human. The correct English form is subhuman, spelled S-U-B-H-U-M-A-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    Lacking characteristics of a human in a way judged to be less than human by some value judgment, opinion, or belief system (as for example an anthropocentric view of nonhuman primates or a Nazi view of various human outgroups).
  2. 2
    Lacking characteristics of a human in a way judged to be less than human by some value judgment, opinion, or belief system (as for example an anthropocentric view of nonhuman primates or a Nazi view of various human outgroups).

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. A secret to Nazi power was that anyone from the ingroup could be turned upon and labeled as subhuman scum when some alleged Jewish ancestry was suddenly "discovered".
  2. We say dolphin intelligence is subhuman; I suspect dolphins say our intelligence is subdolphin.

Etymology

From sub- + human.

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 September 3, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "subhuman"?
"subhuman" is spelled S-U-B-H-U-M-A-N. The IPA pronunciation is [sʌbˈhjuːmən].
What does "subhuman" mean?
As an adjective, "subhuman" means: Lacking characteristics of a human in a way judged to be less than human by some value judgment, opinion, or belief system (as for example an anthropocentric view of nonhuman primates or a Nazi vie...
How do you pronounce "subhuman"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "subhuman" is [sʌbˈhjuːmən]. 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 "subhuman"?
From sub- + human. 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 "subhuman", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

telomere#61,151toilette#61,165sidewall#61,113trialled#61,176

What to do next

You've looked up "subhuman". Here's where to go from here.

  • Usage frequency rank #61,141 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more English words in the "S" letter cohort. S–Z browse
  • PlainSpell rotates a curated Word of the Day from the English corpus, a passive way to discover vocabulary. Word of the Day

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

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