bellicose

/ˈbɛlɪkoʊs/

//ˈbɛlɪkoʊs// adj

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

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

The verdict

“bellicose” is uncommon English (frequency #68,038 among 4,121 “B” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#68,038
frequency rank, English
4,121
“B” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Warlike in nature; aggressive; hostile.

Corpus desk

Index EN-bellicose · bellicose · English

bellicose · rank #68,038 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #68,038
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,121
  • PHOTO-FINISH Belial

Nearest frequency peer: Belial (-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 “bellicose”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for bellicose
PropertyValue
Headwordbellicose
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈbɛlɪkoʊs/
Letters9
Frequency rank#68,038
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “bellicose” in English

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).bellicosefalls 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: “Belial” (#68,037), “Berner” (#68,039), “besting” (#68,040). Among 4,121 “B” headwords, “bellicose” is #68,038. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

bellicose is uncommon English at frequency #68,038 among 4,121 “B” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed /ˈbɛlɪkoʊs/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

Zero misspellings are on record for bellicose in our index, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: Etymology tree Old Latin duellum Latin bellum Proto-Indo-European *-kos Proto-Italic *-kos Latin -cus Latin -icus Latin bellicusder. Latin bellicum signumclip.? Latin bellicum Proto-Indo-European *h₃ed-der. Proto-Indo-European *-h₃d-s-o-? Latin -ōsus Latin … The correct English form is bellicose, spelled B-E-L-L-I-C-O-S-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Warlike in nature; aggressive; hostile.
  2. 2
    Showing or having the impulse to be combative.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. CHINA sent both bellicose and conciliatory signals yesterday as tension continued in the Taiwan Strait over Chinese military exercises and the deployment of US naval battle groups.
  2. The core Ice Age cast—wooly mammoth Manny (Ray Romano), sabertooth tiger Diego (Denis Leary), and sloth Sid (John Leguizamo)—are set adrift, sailing the high seas on a chunk of ice until they collide with a bellicose primate (Peter Dinklage).

Etymology

Etymology tree Old Latin duellum Latin bellum Proto-Indo-European *-kos Proto-Italic *-kos Latin -cus Latin -icus Latin bellicusder. Latin bellicum signumclip.? Latin bellicum Proto-Indo-European *h₃ed-der. Proto-Indo-European *-h₃d-s-o-? Latin -ōsus Latin bellicosusder. Middle English bellicose English bellicose From Middle English bellicose, from Latin bellicosus.

Synonyms

belligerentpugnacious

Antonyms

conciliatorypacificpeaceable

This word in other languages

belicoso(Español)belliqueux(Français)kriegerisch(Deutsch)bélico(Português)

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 "bellicose"?
"bellicose" is spelled B-E-L-L-I-C-O-S-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈbɛlɪkoʊs/.
What does "bellicose" mean?
As an adjective, "bellicose" means: Warlike in nature; aggressive; hostile.
How do you pronounce "bellicose"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "bellicose" is /ˈbɛlɪkoʊs/. 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 "bellicose"?
Etymology tree Old Latin duellum Latin bellum Proto-Indo-European *-kos Proto-Italic *-kos Latin -cus Latin -icus Latin bellicusder. Latin bellicum signumclip.? Latin bellicum Proto-Indo-European *h₃ed-der. Proto-Indo-European *-h₃d-s-o-? Latin -ō... 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 "bellicose", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

bicameral#68,042baselines#68,033birthrate#68,045Aurangzeb#68,020

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list