bivalve

/ˈbaɪvælv/

//ˈbaɪvælv// noun

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

The verdict

“bivalve” is uncommon English (frequency #76,578 among 4,121 “B” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#76,578
frequency rank, English
4,121
“B” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Any mollusc belonging to the taxonomic class Bivalvia, characterized by a shell consisting of two hinged sections, such as a scallop, clam, mussel or oyster.

Corpus desk

Index EN-bivalve · bivalve · English

bivalve · rank #76,578 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #76,578
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,121
  • PHOTO-FINISH Blagojevich

Nearest frequency peer: Blagojevich (+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 “bivalve”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for bivalve
PropertyValue
Headwordbivalve
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈbaɪvælv/
Letters7
Frequency rank#76,578
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “bivalve” 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).bivalvefalls 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: “Blagojevich” (#76,579), “Blairite” (#76,580), “benighted” (#76,574). Among 4,121 “B” headwords, “bivalve” is #76,578. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

bivalve is uncommon English at frequency #76,578 among 4,121 “B” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈbaɪvælv/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for bivalve, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

Etymologically, the entry records: From bi- (“two”) + valve. The correct English form is bivalve, spelled B-I-V-A-L-V-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Any mollusc belonging to the taxonomic class Bivalvia, characterized by a shell consisting of two hinged sections, such as a scallop, clam, mussel or oyster.
  2. 2
    A pericarp in which the seedcase opens or splits into two parts or valves.

Etymology

From bi- (“two”) + valve.

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 "bivalve"?
"bivalve" is spelled B-I-V-A-L-V-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈbaɪvælv/.
What does "bivalve" mean?
As a noun, "bivalve" means: Any mollusc belonging to the taxonomic class Bivalvia, characterized by a shell consisting of two hinged sections, such as a scallop, clam, mussel or oyster.
How do you pronounce "bivalve"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "bivalve" is /ˈbaɪvælv/. 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 "bivalve"?
From bi- (“two”) + valve. 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 "bivalve", 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