bereavement

/bɪˈriːvmənt/

//bɪˈriːvmənt// noun

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

The verdict

“bereavement” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #30,332 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#30,332
frequency rank, English
11
letters
16
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The state of being bereaved; deprivation; especially the loss of a relative by death.

Key facts for bereavement
PropertyValue
Headwordbereavement
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/bɪˈriːvmənt/
Letters11
Frequency rank#30,332
Misspellings tracked16
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “bereavement” sits in English 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). bereavement lands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for bereavement is 11 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /bɪˈriːvmənt/. Corpus data places it at rank #30,332 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "The state of being bereaved; deprivation; especially the loss of a relative by death.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 16 likely wrong-spelling variants for bereavement, with forms such as "bbereavement", "beeravement", and "beraevement". 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 is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: From bereave + -ment. The correct English form is bereavement, spelled B-E-R-E-A-V-E-M-E-N-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    The state of being bereaved; deprivation; especially the loss of a relative by death.

Etymology

From bereave + -ment.

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: bbereavement,beeravement,beraevement,bereaevment,bereaveemnt,bereavemennt,bereavementt,bereavemetn,bereavemment,bereavemnet,bereavmeent,bereavvement,berevaement,berreavement,breeavement,ebreavement

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of bereavement - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

bbereavement1beeravement2beraevement2bereaevment2bereaveemnt2bereavemennt1bereavementt1bereavemetn2
Edit distance from "bereavement"

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 "bereavement"?
"bereavement" is spelled B-E-R-E-A-V-E-M-E-N-T. The IPA pronunciation is /bɪˈriːvmənt/.
What does "bereavement" mean?
As a noun, "bereavement" means: The state of being bereaved; deprivation; especially the loss of a relative by death.
What are common misspellings of "bereavement"?
Common misspellings include "bbereavement", "beeravement", "beraevement", "bereaevment", "bereaveemnt". The correct spelling is "bereavement".
How do you pronounce "bereavement"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "bereavement" is /bɪˈriːvmənt/. 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 "bereavement"?
From bereave + -ment. 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 “bereavement”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is B-E-R-E-A-V-E-M-E-N-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /bɪˈriːvmənt/ (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