felicity

/fɪˈlɪsɪti/

//fɪˈlɪsɪti// noun

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

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

The verdict

“felicity” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #18,076 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#18,076
frequency rank, English
8
letters
12
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Happiness; (countable) an instance of this.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

felicity vs ferocity
75% similar
felicity vs Felicia
63% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for felicity
PropertyValue
Headwordfelicity
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/fɪˈlɪsɪti/
Letters8
Frequency rank#18,076
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “felicity” 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). felicity lands here:

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

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

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for felicity is 8 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /fɪˈlɪsɪti/. Corpus data places it at rank #18,076 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 6 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for felicity, with forms such as "eflicity", "feilcity", and "felciity". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 2 confusable-pair relationships, "ferocity", "Felicia", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English felicite (“bliss, happiness, joy; delight, pleasure; a source of happiness; good fortune; prosperity; well-being; of a planet: in an influential position”) [and other forms], borrowed from Old French felicité (modern French félicité (“bl… The correct English form is felicity, spelled F-E-L-I-C-I-T-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    Happiness; (countable) an instance of this.
  2. 2
    An apt and pleasing style in speech, writing, etc.; (countable) an apt and pleasing choice of words.
  3. 3
    Good luck; success; (countable) An instance of unexpected good luck; a stroke of luck; also, a lucky characteristic.
  4. 4
    Reproduction of a sign with fidelity.
  5. 5
    Something that is either a source of happiness or particularly apt.
  6. 6
    Period (as opposed to lifetime) utility.

Etymology

From Middle English felicite (“bliss, happiness, joy; delight, pleasure; a source of happiness; good fortune; prosperity; well-being; of a planet: in an influential position”) [and other forms], borrowed from Old French felicité (modern French félicité (“bliss, happiness; felicity”)), from Latin fēlīcitātem, the accusative singular of fēlīcitās (“fertility, fruitfulness; happiness, felicity; good fortune; success”), from fēlīx (“happy; blessed, fortunate, lucky; fertile, fruitful; prosperous; auspicious, favourable”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁(y)- (“to nurse, suckle”)) + -itās (a variant of -tās (suffix forming nouns indicating a state of being)).

This word in other languages

felicidad(Español)félicité(Français)felicidade(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: eflicity,feilcity,felciity,feliccity,felicitty,felicityy,feliciyt,felictiy,feliicty,fellicity,ffelicity,fleicity

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of felicity - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

eflicity2feilcity2felciity2feliccity1felicitty1felicityy1feliciyt2felictiy2
Edit distance from "felicity"

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 "felicity"?
"felicity" is spelled F-E-L-I-C-I-T-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /fɪˈlɪsɪti/.
What does "felicity" mean?
As a noun, "felicity" means: Happiness; (countable) an instance of this.
What words are commonly confused with "felicity"?
"felicity" is commonly confused with "ferocity", "Felicia". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "felicity"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "felicity" is /fɪˈlɪsɪti/. 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 "felicity"?
From Middle English felicite (“bliss, happiness, joy; delight, pleasure; a source of happiness; good fortune; prosperity; well-being; of a planet: in an influential position”) [and other forms], borrowed from Old French felicité (modern French fél... 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 “felicity”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is F-E-L-I-C-I-T-Y - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /fɪˈlɪsɪti/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “ferocity” - see the side-by-side comparison. felicity vs ferocity
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
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