subscript
/ˈsʌbskɹɪpt/
"subscript" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“subscript” is uncommon English (frequency #74,542 among 6,566 “S” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- #74,542
- frequency rank, English
- 6,566
- “S” headwords
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A type of lettering form written lower than the things around it.
Corpus desk
Index EN-subscript · subscript · English
subscript · rank #74,542 · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-RARE #74,542
- LEN-LONG 9 letters
- VOW-2 2 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-DENSE 6,566
- PHOTO-FINISH strikeforce
Nearest frequency peer: strikeforce (-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.
Long-tail ranks near “subscript”
Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter
- stoma
stoma
25,463 corpus weight
- Stonehouse
Stonehouse
25,462 corpus weight
- strikeforce
strikeforce
25,460 corpus weight
- subscript
subscript
25,459 corpus weight
- succinate
succinate
25,457 corpus weight
- supercomput…
supercomputing
25,455 corpus weight
What this shows Long-tail view: where “subscript” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | subscript |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈsʌbskɹɪpt/ |
| Letters | 9 |
| Frequency rank | #74,542 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “subscript” in English
Rare enough to double-check
subscript is uncommon English at frequency #74,542 among 6,566 “S” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈsʌbskɹɪpt/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.
subscript has no tracked misspelling variants, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.
Etymologically, the entry records: From sub- + script. The correct English form is subscript, spelled S-U-B-S-C-R-I-P-T.
Definition
- 1A type of lettering form written lower than the things around it.
- 2An index into an array or hash.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how subscript appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
In chemical formulas the number of atoms in a molecule is written as a subscript, so we write H₂O for water which has two atoms of hydrogen for each one of oxygen.
If the container is subscriptable and you remember the position where a particular piece of data was stored, you can use the subscript to efficiently retrieve the data.
Etymology
From sub- + script.
Antonyms
This word in other languages
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 "subscript"?
What does "subscript" mean?
How do you pronounce "subscript"?
What is the origin of the word "subscript"?
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Similar English words by spelling shape
Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "subscript", not the corpus desk frequency band.
Same letter count
Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).