curriculum vitae

/kəˈɹɪkjələm ˈviːteɪ/

//kəˈɹɪkjələm ˈviːteɪ// noun

"curriculum-vitae" is a 15-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“curriculum vitae” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
16
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A written account of one's life comprising one's education, accomplishments, work experience, publications, etc.; especially, one used to apply for a job.

Corpus desk

Index EN-curriculum-vitae · curriculum vitae · English

curriculum vitae · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 16 letters
  • VOW-7 7 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.

Key facts for curriculum vitae
PropertyValue
Headwordcurriculum vitae
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/kəˈɹɪkjələm ˈviːteɪ/
Letters16
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “curriculum vitae” in English

curriculum vitaefalls outside the top-100,000 ranked English words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

curriculum vitae is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed /kəˈɹɪkjələm ˈviːteɪ/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for curriculum vitae, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Latin curriculum (“course”) + vītae, genitive of vīta (“life”). The correct English form is curriculum vitae, spelled C-U-R-R-I-C-U-L-U-M- -V-I-T-A-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A written account of one's life comprising one's education, accomplishments, work experience, publications, etc.; especially, one used to apply for a job.
  2. 2
    A detailed written account of one's education and experience used to seek positions in academic or educational environments, typically including academic credentials, publications, courses taught, etc.

Etymology

From Latin curriculum (“course”) + vītae, genitive of vīta (“life”).

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.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "curriculum vitae"?
"curriculum vitae" is spelled C-U-R-R-I-C-U-L-U-M- -V-I-T-A-E. The IPA pronunciation is /kəˈɹɪkjələm ˈviːteɪ/.
What does "curriculum vitae" mean?
As a noun, "curriculum vitae" means: A written account of one's life comprising one's education, accomplishments, work experience, publications, etc.; especially, one used to apply for a job.
How do you pronounce "curriculum vitae"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "curriculum vitae" is /kəˈɹɪkjələm ˈviːteɪ/. 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 "curriculum vitae"?
From Latin curriculum (“course”) + vītae, genitive of vīta (“life”). 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.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list