calvary
noun
calvary is spelled C-A-L-V-A-R-Y: 7 letters and 3 syllables. It appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 29,270th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). People search “calvary vs cavalry” about 3,600 times a month (Google, United States). As a noun, calvary means “A life-size representation of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ on a piece of raised ground” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of calvary is calvaries.
How many letters and syllables are in calvary?
| Letters | 7: C-A-L-V-A-R-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 1 million words; the 29,270th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Pairs people search | |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); Bing searches in the United States: the average month from September 2025 to August 2026 (Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, read September 30, 2026); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is calvary?
Calvary appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 29,270th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce calvary?
Calvary has 3 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Words people confuse with calvary
Word pairs people search, with the monthly searches for “a vs b” (G: Google, B: Bing, United States).
Sources: Google and Bing searches (September 2025 to August 2026, through DataForSEO); English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
What rhymes with calvary?
No other word on PlainSpell ends in the same sounds as calvary.
Spelled with the same letters in another order: cavalry.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of calvary
- calvaries plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does calvary mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A life-size representation of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ on a piece of raised ground.
- 2
A series of representations of Christ’s Passion in a church.
- 3
A type of monumental public Christian cross, sometimes encased in an open shrine.
Calvaries are typical of Galicia (Spain) and Portugal.
- 4
A strenuous experience.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Calvary in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does calvary come from?
From Late Latin calvāria (“skull”). Doublet of calavera and calvaria.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).