sunscreen

noun

"sunscreen" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“sunscreen” has 14 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #19,981. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#19,981
frequency rank, English
54,294
“S” headwords
14
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A topical substance formulated to protect the skin from the harmful effects of ultraviolet radiation by absorbing, reflecting or scattering ultraviolet rays.

Key facts for sunscreen
PropertyValue
Headwordsunscreen
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters9
Frequency rank#19,981
Misspellings tracked14
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “sunscreen” 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). sunscreen lands here:

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

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

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 14 spelling variants around sunscreen, anoun. Corpus frequency is #19,981 among 54,294 “S” headwords. Dominant gloss: "A topical substance formulated to protect the skin from the harmful effects of ultraviolet radiation by absorbing, reflecting or scattering ultraviolet rays.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 14 likely wrong-spelling variants for sunscreen, with forms such as "snuscreen", "ssunscreen", and "suncsreen". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

Etymologically, the entry records: From sun + screen. The correct English form is sunscreen, spelled S-U-N-S-C-R-E-E-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    A topical substance formulated to protect the skin from the harmful effects of ultraviolet radiation by absorbing, reflecting or scattering ultraviolet rays.

Etymology

From sun + screen.

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • snuscreen
  • ssunscreen
  • suncsreen
  • sunnscreen
  • sunsccreen
  • sunsceren
  • sunscreenn
  • sunscren
  • sunscrene
  • sunscrreen
  • sunsrceen
  • sunsscreen
  • susncreen
  • usnscreen

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of sunscreen - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

snuscreen2ssunscreen1suncsreen2sunnscreen1sunsccreen1sunsceren2sunscreenn1sunscren1
Edit distance from "sunscreen"

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 "sunscreen"?
"sunscreen" is spelled S-U-N-S-C-R-E-E-N.
What does "sunscreen" mean?
As a noun, "sunscreen" means: A topical substance formulated to protect the skin from the harmful effects of ultraviolet radiation by absorbing, reflecting or scattering ultraviolet rays.
What are common misspellings of "sunscreen"?
Common misspellings include "snuscreen", "ssunscreen", "suncsreen", "sunnscreen", "sunsccreen". The correct spelling is "sunscreen".
What is the origin of the word "sunscreen"?
From sun + screen. 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 “sunscreen”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is S-U-N-S-C-R-E-E-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words

Same frequency band

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