melena

Name: melena, Spanish Word Data
Creator: Wiktionary
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

[meˈlena]

/[meˈlena]/ noun

By PlainSpell · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) · analyzed May 6, 2026

The verdict

“melena” has 8 generated spelling variants in the Spanish index at frequency #26,142. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#26,142
frequency rank, Spanish: 36,142
“M” headwords: 8
tracked misspellings: 18
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Cabello largo, peinado de tal modo que cae a los lados de la cabeza y junto a los ojos.

Corpus desk

Index ES-melena · melena · Spanish

melena · rank #26,142 · 8 variants · 18 confusables

FREQ-MID #26,142
LEN-LONG 6 letters
VOW-3 3 vowels
CONFUS-HIGH 18 pairs
VAR-MID 8 variants
BOOK-DENSE 36,142
PHOTO-FINISH mausoleo

Nearest frequency peer: mausoleo (-1 rank slots)

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.

materialismo

73,862
matrículas

73,861
mausoleo

73,860
melena

73,859
Meléndez

73,858
mencionaste

73,857

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

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

melena vs meten

67% similar

melena vs melón

67% similar

melena vs Mella

50% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for melena
Property	Value
Headword	melena
Language	Spanish
Part of speech	Noun
IPA	[meˈlena]
Letters	6
Frequency rank	#26,142
Misspellings tracked	8
Confusable pairs	18
Source	Wiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “melena” sits in Spanish 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). melena lands here:

#26,142

#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 8 spelling variants around melena (IPA [meˈlena]), anoun. Corpus frequency is #26,142 among 36,142 “M” headwords. Wiktionary lists 6 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for melena, with forms such as "emlena", "meelna", and "melean". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 18 confusable-pair relationships, "meten", "melón", "Mella", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so its spelling is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct Spanish form is melena, spelled M-E-L-E-N-A.

Definition

1
Cabello largo, peinado de tal modo que cae a los lados de la cabeza y junto a los ojos.
2
Cualquier peinado del cabello largo que lo lleve suelto y abundante.
3
Crines largas que ornan el cuello del león macho.
4
Cabello suelto.
5
Almohadilla o piel que se pone a los bueyes en la frente para que no les roce la cuerda o correa con que se les sujeta el yugo.
6
Yugo de una campana.

Synonyms

melenera

This word in other languages

mane(English)crinière(Français)Mähne(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

emlena
meelna
melean
melenna
mellena
melnea
mleena
mmelena

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of melena - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

Edit distance from "melena"

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 Spanish 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 "melena"?

"melena" is spelled M-E-L-E-N-A. The IPA pronunciation is [meˈlena].

What does "melena" mean?

As a noun, "melena" means: Cabello largo, peinado de tal modo que cae a los lados de la cabeza y junto a los ojos.

What words are commonly confused with "melena"?

"melena" is commonly confused with "meten", "melón", "Mella". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.

How do you pronounce "melena"?

The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "melena" is [meˈlena]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.

What language does "melena" come from?

"melena" is a Spanish word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.

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 Spanish words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "melena", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked Spanish headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

mesita#26,146 magnus#26,131 muevan#26,155 Lleras#26,126

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

Napoli8 variants níquel8 variants incide8 variants quicio8 variants

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.