fallibility

/fæləˈbɪləti/

//fæləˈbɪləti// noun

"fallibility" is a 11-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“fallibility” is uncommon English (frequency #79,504 among 2,507 “F” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#79,504
frequency rank, English
2,507
“F” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The state of being prone to error.

Corpus desk

Index EN-fallibility · fallibility · English

fallibility · rank #79,504 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #79,504
  • LEN-MEGA 11 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,507
  • PHOTO-FINISH factoid

Nearest frequency peer: factoid (-1 rank slots)

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.

Long-tail ranks near “fallibility”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “fallibility” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for fallibility
PropertyValue
Headwordfallibility
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/fæləˈbɪləti/
Letters11
Frequency rank#79,504
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “fallibility” in English

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).fallibilityfalls in this rarity band:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Rare peers in the same band: “factoid” (#79,503), “explication” (#79,502), “evanescent” (#79,500). Among 2,507 “F” headwords, “fallibility” is #79,504. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

fallibility is uncommon English at frequency #79,504 among 2,507 “F” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /fæləˈbɪləti/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

No misspelling variants are generated for fallibility in our index, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From fallible + -ity. The correct English form is fallibility, spelled F-A-L-L-I-B-I-L-I-T-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    The state of being prone to error.
  2. 2
    An error-generating characteristic.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how fallibility appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. ...they had a damnably suggestive power which was intensified by the fact of their being genuine photographs—actual optical links with what they portrayed, and the product of an impersonal transmitting process without prejudice, fallibility, or mendacity.
  2. Dr. Anne Armstrong-Coben has provided a spot-on description of the fallibilities of the electronic medical record from the standpoint of the doctor-patient encounter.

Etymology

From fallible + -ity.

Antonyms

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); 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 "fallibility"?
"fallibility" is spelled F-A-L-L-I-B-I-L-I-T-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /fæləˈbɪləti/.
What does "fallibility" mean?
As a noun, "fallibility" means: The state of being prone to error.
How do you pronounce "fallibility"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "fallibility" is /fæləˈbɪləti/. 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 "fallibility"?
From fallible + -ity. 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.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "fallibility", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 11 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list