heresy

/ˈhɛɹəsi/

//ˈhɛɹəsi// noun

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

"heresy" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“heresy” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #18,334. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#18,334
frequency rank, English
23,837
“H” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
12
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A doctrine held by a member of a religion at variance or conflict with established religious beliefs.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

heresy vs hers
67% similar
heresy vs heroes
67% similar
heresy vs herpes
67% similar

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

Key facts for heresy
PropertyValue
Headwordheresy
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈhɛɹəsi/
Letters6
Frequency rank#18,334
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs12
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “heresy” 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). heresy lands here:

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

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

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around heresy (IPA /ˈhɛɹəsi/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #18,334 among 23,837 “H” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for heresy, with forms such as "ehresy", "heersy", and "heressy". 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 12 confusable-pair relationships, "hers", "heroes", "herpes", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English heresie, from Old French heresie (modern hérésie), from Latin haeresis, from Ancient Greek αἵρεσις (haíresis, “choice, system of principles”), from αἱρέομαι (hairéomai, “to take for oneself, to choose”), the middle voice of αἱρέω (hairéō… The correct English form is heresy, spelled H-E-R-E-S-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    A doctrine held by a member of a religion at variance or conflict with established religious beliefs.
  2. 2
    A controversial or unorthodox opinion held by a member of a group, as in politics, philosophy or science.

Etymology

From Middle English heresie, from Old French heresie (modern hérésie), from Latin haeresis, from Ancient Greek αἵρεσις (haíresis, “choice, system of principles”), from αἱρέομαι (hairéomai, “to take for oneself, to choose”), the middle voice of αἱρέω (hairéō, “to take”), possibly from Proto-Indo-European *ser-; see also Welsh herw (“theft, raid”), Ancient Greek στερέω (steréō, “to deprive of”).

This word in other languages

herejía(Español)hérésie(Français)Häresie(Deutsch)heresia(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ehresy
  • heersy
  • heressy
  • heresyy
  • hereys
  • herresy
  • hersey
  • hheresy
  • hreesy

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ehresy2heersy2heressy1heresyy1hereys2herresy1hersey2hheresy1
Edit distance from "heresy"

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 "heresy"?
"heresy" is spelled H-E-R-E-S-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈhɛɹəsi/.
What does "heresy" mean?
As a noun, "heresy" means: A doctrine held by a member of a religion at variance or conflict with established religious beliefs.
What words are commonly confused with "heresy"?
"heresy" is commonly confused with "hers", "heroes", "herpes". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "heresy"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "heresy" is /ˈhɛɹəsi/. 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 "heresy"?
From Middle English heresie, from Old French heresie (modern hérésie), from Latin haeresis, from Ancient Greek αἵρεσις (haíresis, “choice, system of principles”), from αἱρέομαι (hairéomai, “to take for oneself, to choose”), the middle voice of αἱρ... 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 “heresy”

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

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

Same frequency band

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