atavism

/ˈætəˌvɪzəm/

//ˈætəˌvɪzəm// noun

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

"atavism" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“atavism” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
7
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The reappearance of an ancestral characteristic in an organism after several generations of absence; a throwback.

Key facts for atavism
PropertyValue
Headwordatavism
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈætəˌvɪzəm/
Letters7
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “atavism” sits in English frequency

atavism falls outside the top-100,000 ranked English words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

atavism is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈætəˌvɪzəm/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for atavism, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: From French atavisme. Compare ancestorism. The correct English form is atavism, spelled A-T-A-V-I-S-M.

Definition

  1. 1
    The reappearance of an ancestral characteristic in an organism after several generations of absence; a throwback.
  2. 2
    The recurrence or reversion to a past behaviour, method, characteristic or style after a long period of absence.
  3. 3
    Reversion to past primitive behavior, especially violence.

Etymology

From French atavisme. Compare ancestorism.

This word in other languages

atavismo(Español)atavisme(Français)Atavismus(Deutsch)atavismo(Português)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "atavism"?
"atavism" is spelled A-T-A-V-I-S-M. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈætəˌvɪzəm/.
What does "atavism" mean?
As a noun, "atavism" means: The reappearance of an ancestral characteristic in an organism after several generations of absence; a throwback.
How do you pronounce "atavism"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "atavism" is /ˈætəˌvɪzəm/. 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 "atavism"?
From French atavisme. Compare ancestorism. 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 “atavism”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is A-T-A-V-I-S-M - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈætəˌvɪzəm/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list