unicellular

/ˌjuːnɪˈsɛljʊlə(ɹ)/

//ˌjuːnɪˈsɛljʊlə(ɹ)// adj

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

"unicellular" is a 11-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“unicellular” is uncommon English (frequency #74,615 among 1,433 “U” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#74,615
frequency rank, English
1,433
“U” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Describing any microorganism that has a single cell.

Corpus desk

Index EN-unicellular · unicellular · English

unicellular · rank #74,615 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #74,615
  • LEN-MEGA 11 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,433
  • PHOTO-FINISH unfollowed

Nearest frequency peer: unfollowed (-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 “unicellular”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “unicellular” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for unicellular
PropertyValue
Headwordunicellular
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˌjuːnɪˈsɛljʊlə(ɹ)/
Letters11
Frequency rank#74,615
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “unicellular” in English

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).unicellularfalls in this rarity band:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Rare peers in the same band: “unfollowed” (#74,614), “unlabeled” (#74,617), “Uchida” (#74,612). Among 1,433 “U” headwords, “unicellular” is #74,615. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

unicellular is uncommon English at frequency #74,615 among 1,433 “U” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed /ˌjuːnɪˈsɛljʊlə(ɹ)/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Describing any microorganism that has a single cell.".

unicellular doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: From uni- + cellular. The correct English form is unicellular, spelled U-N-I-C-E-L-L-U-L-A-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    Describing any microorganism that has a single cell.

Etymology

From uni- + cellular.

This word in other languages

unicelular(Español)unicellulaire(Français)einzellig(Deutsch)

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 "unicellular"?
"unicellular" is spelled U-N-I-C-E-L-L-U-L-A-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˌjuːnɪˈsɛljʊlə(ɹ)/.
What does "unicellular" mean?
As an adjective, "unicellular" means: Describing any microorganism that has a single cell.
How do you pronounce "unicellular"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "unicellular" is /ˌjuːnɪˈsɛljʊlə(ɹ)/. 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 "unicellular"?
From uni- + cellular. 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 "unicellular", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 11 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Thermopylae#74,575strikeforce#74,541backbencher#74,745chickenshit#74,827

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list