grievous

/ˈɡɹiː.vəs/

//ˈɡɹiː.vəs// adj

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

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

The verdict

“grievous” has 11 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #22,986. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#22,986
frequency rank, English
2,313
“G” headwords
11
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Causing grief, pain, or sorrow.

Corpus desk

Index EN-grievous · grievous · English

grievous · rank #22,986 · 11 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #22,986
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-MID 11 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,313
  • PHOTO-FINISH Gustav

Nearest frequency peer: Gustav (+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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “grievous”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “grievous” 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).

grievous vs grieves
75% similar

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

Key facts for grievous
PropertyValue
Headwordgrievous
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈɡɹiː.vəs/
Letters8
Frequency rank#22,986
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “grievous”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).grievouslands here:

#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. Same rarity band neighbours include “Gustav” (#22,987), “gist” (#22,984), “handbags” (#22,988). Among 2,313 “G” headwords, “grievous” is #22,986. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 11 spelling variants around grievous (IPA /ˈɡɹiː.vəs/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #22,986 among 2,313 “G” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for grievous, with forms such as "ggrievous", "girevous", and "greivous". 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 1 confusable-pair relationship, "grieves", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English grevous, from Anglo-Norman grevous, from Old French grever, from Latin gravō (“I burden”). Developed in the 13th century. Equivalent to grief + -ous. The correct English form is grievous, spelled G-R-I-E-V-O-U-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    Causing grief, pain, or sorrow.
  2. 2
    Serious, grave, dire, or dangerous.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. No wonder that the old man's eye dwelt upon her with mingled pride and tenderness; yet was it a face that might cause affection many an anxious hour, for there was mind in the lofty and clear forehead, heart in the warm and flushed cheek,—and what are mind and heart to woman, but fairy gifts, for whose possession a grievous price will be exacted.
  2. Heavy rain had so undermined the approach to the bridge at Mountnessing as to make it unsafe, and although Chelmsford and Colchester had decked themselves with flags and bunting, the train returned to London "with grievous disappointment to all."

Etymology

From Middle English grevous, from Anglo-Norman grevous, from Old French grever, from Latin gravō (“I burden”). Developed in the 13th century. Equivalent to grief + -ous.

This word in other languages

grave(Français)schmerzlich(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ggrievous
  • girevous
  • greivous
  • grieovus
  • grievosu
  • grievouss
  • grievuos
  • grievvous
  • griveous
  • grrievous
  • rgievous

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ggrievous1girevous2greivous2grieovus2grievosu2grievouss1grievuos2grievvous1
Edit distance from "grievous"

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 "grievous"?
"grievous" is spelled G-R-I-E-V-O-U-S. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɡɹiː.vəs/.
What does "grievous" mean?
As an adjective, "grievous" means: Causing grief, pain, or sorrow.
What words are commonly confused with "grievous"?
"grievous" is commonly confused with "grieves". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "grievous"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "grievous" is /ˈɡɹiː.vəs/. 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 "grievous"?
From Middle English grevous, from Anglo-Norman grevous, from Old French grever, from Latin gravō (“I burden”). Developed in the 13th century. Equivalent to grief + -ous. 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 "grievous", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

handbags#22,988Hogwarts#22,995fireball#22,971impunity#23,004

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (11 here; floor ≥5).

Hebrews11 variantsHepburn11 variantsdrinker11 variantsDempsey11 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list