avarice

/ˈævəɹɪs/

//ˈævəɹɪs// noun

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

The verdict

“avarice” is uncommon English (frequency #52,785 among 3,931 “A” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#52,785
frequency rank, English
3,931
“A” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Excessive or inordinate desire of gain; greed for wealth

Corpus desk

Index EN-avarice · avarice · English

avarice · rank #52,785 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #52,785
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,931
  • PHOTO-FINISH asylums

Nearest frequency peer: asylums (-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 “avarice”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for avarice
PropertyValue
Headwordavarice
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈævəɹɪs/
Letters7
Frequency rank#52,785
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “avarice” 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).avaricefalls in this rarity band:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “asylums” (#52,784), “articular” (#52,782), “Arthurian” (#52,781). Among 3,931 “A” headwords, “avarice” is #52,785. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

avarice is uncommon English at frequency #52,785 among 3,931 “A” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈævəɹɪs/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

avarice has no tracked misspelling variants, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English avarice, from Old French, from Latin avāritia, from avārus (“greedy”). The correct English form is avarice, spelled A-V-A-R-I-C-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Excessive or inordinate desire of gain; greed for wealth
  2. 2
    Inordinate desire for some supposed good.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

These source excerpts show how avarice appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. By multiplying the means of gratification, by promoting the introduction and circulation of the precious metals, those darling objects of human avarice and enterprise, it serves to vivify and invigorate the channels of industry, and to make them flow with greater activity and copiousness.

Etymology

From Middle English avarice, from Old French, from Latin avāritia, from avārus (“greedy”).

Synonyms

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 "avarice"?
"avarice" is spelled A-V-A-R-I-C-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈævəɹɪs/.
What does "avarice" mean?
As a noun, "avarice" means: Excessive or inordinate desire of gain; greed for wealth
How do you pronounce "avarice"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "avarice" is /ˈævəɹɪs/. 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 "avarice"?
From Middle English avarice, from Old French, from Latin avāritia, from avārus (“greedy”). 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 "avarice", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list