convulse
/kənˈvʌls/
"convulse" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“convulse” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 8
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To suffer violent involuntary contractions of the muscles, causing one's body to contort.
Corpus desk
Index EN-convulse · convulse · English
convulse · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-LONG 8 letters
- VOW-3 3 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "C" thin
- PHOTO-UNK Peer pending
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.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | convulse |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| IPA | /kənˈvʌls/ |
| Letters | 8 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “convulse” in English
Rare enough to double-check
convulse is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as averb, transcribed /kənˈvʌls/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.
convulse has no tracked misspelling variants, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Latin convulsus, past participle of convellere (“to pluck up, dislocate, convulse”), from com- (“together”) + vellere (“to pluck, pull”). Doublet of convel. The correct English form is convulse, spelled C-O-N-V-U-L-S-E.
Definition
- 1To suffer violent involuntary contractions of the muscles, causing one's body to contort.
- 2To be beset by political or social upheaval.
- 3To cause (someone) to suffer such contractions, especially as a result of making them laugh heartily.
- 4To cause disruption to.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how convulse appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
He realized she was crying. He could feel her body convulsing with little sobs and her cheek was wet where it brushed his.
The Persian Empire was convulsing with intrigue, revolt, and civil war.
Etymology
From Latin convulsus, past participle of convellere (“to pluck up, dislocate, convulse”), from com- (“together”) + vellere (“to pluck, pull”). Doublet of convel.
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). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.