fundamentalism

/ˌfʌndəˈmentəlɪzəm/

//ˌfʌndəˈmentəlɪzəm// noun

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

"fundamentalism" is a 14-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“fundamentalism” has 22 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #32,001. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#32,001
frequency rank, English
2,507
“F” headwords
22
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The tendency to reduce a religion to its most fundamental tenets, based on strict interpretation of core texts.

Corpus desk

Index EN-fundamentalism · fundamentalism · English

fundamentalism · rank #32,001 · 22 variants · 2 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #32,001
  • LEN-MEGA 14 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 2 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 22 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,507
  • PHOTO-FINISH FTA

Nearest frequency peer: FTA (-2 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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “fundamentalism”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “fundamentalism” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

fundamentalism vs fundamentals
86% similar
fundamentalism vs fundamentalist
93% similar

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

Key facts for fundamentalism
PropertyValue
Headwordfundamentalism
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˌfʌndəˈmentəlɪzəm/
Letters14
Frequency rank#32,001
Misspellings tracked22
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “fundamentalism”

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).fundamentalismlands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “FTA” (#31,999), “Gabon” (#32,003), “frisk” (#31,998). Among 2,507 “F” headwords, “fundamentalism” is #32,001. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 22 spelling variants around fundamentalism (IPA /ˌfʌndəˈmentəlɪzəm/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #32,001 among 2,507 “F” headwords. Wiktionary lists 4 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 22 likely wrong-spelling variants for fundamentalism, with forms such as "ffundamentalism", "fnudamentalism", and "fudnamentalism". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 2 confusable-pair relationships, "fundamentals", "fundamentalist", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From fundamental + -ism. First used in the 1910s by American Christians. The correct English form is fundamentalism, spelled F-U-N-D-A-M-E-N-T-A-L-I-S-M.

Definition

  1. 1
    The tendency to reduce a religion to its most fundamental tenets, based on strict interpretation of core texts.
  2. 2
    A rigid conformity to any set of basic tenets.
  3. 3
    The belief that fundamental financial quantities are the best predictor of the price of a financial instrument.
  4. 4
    A Christian movement that started in the late 19th and early 20th centuries among British and American Protestants, which emphasizes literal interpretation of the Bible, and came up as a reaction to liberal theology and cultural modernism

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. Recent books by philosopher Roger Scruton (1999, 2000) and music educator Robert Walker (2007) may be interpreted as a last desperate gasp of this form of musical fundamentalism or neoconservativism—the kind that tells the masses what is "good for them" on the grounds that they lack adequate bases for judgments on their own […]

Etymology

From fundamental + -ism. First used in the 1910s by American Christians.

This word in other languages

fundamentalismo(Español)fondamentalisme(Français)Fundamentalismus(Deutsch)fundamentalismo(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ffundamentalism
  • fnudamentalism
  • fudnamentalism
  • funadmentalism
  • fundaemntalism
  • fundamenatlism
  • fundamenntalism
  • fundamentailsm
  • fundamentalims
  • fundamentalismm
  • fundamentalissm
  • fundamentallism
  • fundamentalsim
  • fundamentlaism
  • fundamenttalism
  • fundametnalism
  • fundammentalism
  • fundamnetalism
  • funddamentalism
  • fundmaentalism
  • funndamentalism
  • ufndamentalism

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of fundamentalism - 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.

ffundamentalism1fnudamentalism2fudnamentalism2funadmentalism2fundaemntalism2fundamenatlism2fundamenntalism1fundamentailsm2
Edit distance from "fundamentalism"

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 "fundamentalism"?
"fundamentalism" is spelled F-U-N-D-A-M-E-N-T-A-L-I-S-M. The IPA pronunciation is /ˌfʌndəˈmentəlɪzəm/.
What does "fundamentalism" mean?
As a noun, "fundamentalism" means: The tendency to reduce a religion to its most fundamental tenets, based on strict interpretation of core texts.
What words are commonly confused with "fundamentalism"?
"fundamentalism" is commonly confused with "fundamentals", "fundamentalist". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "fundamentalism"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "fundamentalism" is /ˌfʌndəˈmentəlɪzəm/. 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 "fundamentalism"?
From fundamental + -ism. First used in the 1910s by American Christians. 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 "fundamentalism", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 14 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

microprocessor#32,081schoolchildren#31,751hypothetically#31,609denominational#31,504

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (22 here; floor ≥5).

chronologically22 variantssubconsciously22 variantsmalfunctioning22 variantsindoctrination22 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list