enormity
enorm·i·ty/ɪˈnoɹmɪti/noun
enormity is spelled E-N-O-R-M-I-T-Y: 8 letters and 3 syllables (enorm·i·ty). It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 42,680th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, enormity means “Deviation from moral normality; extreme wickedness, nefariousness, or cruelty” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of enormity is enormities.
How many letters and syllables are in enormity?
| Letters | 8: E-N-O-R-M-I-T-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3: enorm·i·ty |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 42,680th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is enormity?
Enormity appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 42,680th 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 enormity?
- UK /ɪˈnɔːmɪti/
- US /ɪˈnoɹmɪti/
- US [-ɾi]
Enormity has 3 syllables, split enorm·i·ty in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-au-enormity.ogg, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Back_ache-Enormity.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with enormity?
One word on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as enormity from its last stressed vowel (/oɹmɪti/):
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 enormity
- enormities plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does enormity mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
obsoleteDeviation from what is normal or standard; irregularity, abnormality.
- 2
Deviation from moral normality; extreme wickedness, nefariousness, or cruelty.
Not until the war ended and journalists were able to enter Cambodia did the world really become aware of the enormity of Pol Pot’s oppression.
- 3
A breach of law or morality; a transgression, an act of evil or wickedness.
- 4
proscribedGreat size; enormousness, hugeness, immenseness.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Enormity in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| Portuguese | enormidade |
| Spanish | perversidad, enormidad , gigantez |
| French | énormité |
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 enormity come from?
From Late Middle English ēnorme (“monstrous or unnatural act; enormity”), from Old French énormité (“enormity”), from Latin ēnormitās (“irregularity; enormity”), from ēnōrmis (“irregular, unusual; enormous, immense”) + -itās (suffix forming nouns indicating states of being). Ēnōrmis is derived from e- (a variant of ex- (prefix meaning ‘out; away’) + nōrma (“norm, standard”) + -is (Latin suffix forming adjectives from nouns).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).