# havoc

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈhævək/ · frequency rank #14,957

## Definitions
1. Widespread devastation and destruction.
2. Mayhem.

## Etymology
From Middle English havok, havyk, from Old French havok in the phrase crier havok (“cry havoc”) a signal to soldiers to seize plunder, from Old French crier (“cry out, shout”) + havot (“pillaging, looting”), of obscure origin. Probably from a derivative of Old French *haf, hef (“hook”), from Frankish *haf, *habbjā, *happjā (“pruning-hook, scythe”), derived from Proto-Germanic *habjaną (“to take up, lift”), related to Old French havee (“handful”), Old French havet (“pruning-hook”), Old High German habba, heppa (“pruning-hook, scythe”), modern German Hippe (“billhook”). If so, then also related to English heave and doublet of hatchet.

## Easily confused with
- **HVAC** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/havoc-vs-hvac)
- **Havre** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/havoc-vs-havre)
- **hao** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hao-vs-havoc)
- **hav** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hav-vs-havoc)
- **have** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/have-vs-havoc)
- **halo** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/halo-vs-havoc)
- **haven** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/haven-vs-havoc)
- **Hanoi** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hanoi-vs-havoc)
- **haves** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/haves-vs-havoc)

## Common misspellings (7)
`ahvoc`, `haovc`, `havco`, `havocc`, `havvoc`, `hhavoc`, `hvaoc`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/havoc