fever

Name: fever, English Word Data
Creator: Wiktionary
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

/ˈfiːvə/

//ˈfiːvə// noun

By PlainSpell Editorial Team · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) · analyzed May 6, 2026

The verdict

“fever” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #4,945 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#4,945
frequency rank, English: 5
letters: 7
tracked misspellings: 20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A higher than normal body temperature of a person (or, generally, a mammal), usually caused by disease.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

fever vs five

60% similar

fever vs fewer

80% similar

fever vs fiber

60% similar

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

Key facts for fever
Property	Value
Headword	fever
Language	English
Part of speech	Noun
IPA	/ˈfiːvə/
Letters	5
Frequency rank	#4,945
Misspellings tracked	7
Confusable pairs	20
Source	Wiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “fever” 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). fever lands here:

#4,945

#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 fever is 5 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈfiːvə/. Corpus data places it at rank #4,945 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 5 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for fever, with forms such as "efver", "feevr", and "feverr". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "five", "fewer", "fiber", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English fever, fevere, from Old English fefer, fefor (“fever”) and Old French fievre (“fever”), from Latin febris (“a fever”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰegʷʰ- (“to burn”). Replaced native Old English hriþ (“fever”). Compare also Saterland Fris… The correct English form is fever, spelled F-E-V-E-R.

Definition

1
A higher than normal body temperature of a person (or, generally, a mammal), usually caused by disease.
2
Any of various diseases.
3
A state of excitement or anxiety.
4
A group of stingrays.
5
Sexual attraction towards a specific group of people.

Etymology

From Middle English fever, fevere, from Old English fefer, fefor (“fever”) and Old French fievre (“fever”), from Latin febris (“a fever”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰegʷʰ- (“to burn”). Replaced native Old English hriþ (“fever”). Compare also Saterland Frisian Fiewer, German Fieber, Danish feber, Swedish feber.

Synonyms

high temperaturepyrexia temperature excitation excitement passion

This word in other languages

fiebre(Español)fièvre(Français)Fieber(Deutsch)febre(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: efver,feevr,feverr,fevre,fevver,ffever,fveer

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of fever - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

Edit distance from "fever"

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 "fever"?

"fever" is spelled F-E-V-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈfiːvə/.

What does "fever" mean?

As a noun, "fever" means: A higher than normal body temperature of a person (or, generally, a mammal), usually caused by disease.

What words are commonly confused with "fever"?

"fever" is commonly confused with "five", "fewer", "fiber". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.

How do you pronounce "fever"?

The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "fever" is /ˈfiːvə/. 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 "fever"?

From Middle English fever, fevere, from Old English fefer, fefor (“fever”) and Old French fievre (“fever”), from Latin febris (“a fever”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰegʷʰ- (“to burn”). Replaced native Old English hriþ (“fever”). Compare also Sate... 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 “fever”

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

The one correct English spelling is F-E-V-E-R - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
Say it as /ˈfiːvə/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
Don't mix it up with “five” - see the side-by-side comparison. fever vs five
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.