crevasse

/kɹəˈvæs/

//kɹəˈvæs// noun

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

"crevasse" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“crevasse” is uncommon English (frequency #61,393 among 43,570 “C” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#61,393
frequency rank, English
43,570
“C” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A crack or fissure in a glacier or snowfield; a chasm.

Key facts for crevasse
PropertyValue
Headwordcrevasse
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/kɹəˈvæs/
Letters8
Frequency rank#61,393
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “crevasse” 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). crevasse lands here:

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

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

Rare enough to double-check

crevasse is uncommon English at frequency #61,393 among 43,570 “C” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /kɹəˈvæs/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.

No generated misspelling entries exist for crevasse in our index, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

Etymologically, the entry records: From French crevasse. Doublet of crevice. The correct English form is crevasse, spelled C-R-E-V-A-S-S-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A crack or fissure in a glacier or snowfield; a chasm.
  2. 2
    A breach in a canal or river bank.
  3. 3
    Any cleft or fissure.
  4. 4
    A discontinuity or “gap” between the accounted variables and an observed outcome.

Etymology

From French crevasse. Doublet of crevice.

This word in other languages

crevasse(Français)Gletscherspalte(Deutsch)

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 "crevasse"?
"crevasse" is spelled C-R-E-V-A-S-S-E. The IPA pronunciation is /kɹəˈvæs/.
What does "crevasse" mean?
As a noun, "crevasse" means: A crack or fissure in a glacier or snowfield; a chasm.
How do you pronounce "crevasse"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "crevasse" is /kɹəˈvæs/. 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 "crevasse"?
From French crevasse. Doublet of crevice. 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 “crevasse”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is C-R-E-V-A-S-S-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /kɹəˈvæs/ (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

Other uncommon English words near this rank

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