horcrux

noun

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

"horcrux" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“horcrux” is uncommon English (frequency #79,600 among 2,646 “H” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#79,600
frequency rank, English
2,646
“H” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - In Harry Potter, an object in which a wizard has concealed a part of their soul through magic, rendering them immortal until the object is irreparably damaged or destroyed.

Corpus desk

Index EN-horcrux · horcrux · English

horcrux · rank #79,600 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #79,600
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,646
  • PHOTO-FINISH housecleaning

Nearest frequency peer: housecleaning (+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.

Long-tail ranks near “horcrux”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “horcrux” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for horcrux
PropertyValue
Headwordhorcrux
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters7
Frequency rank#79,600
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “horcrux” in English

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).horcruxfalls in this rarity band:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Rare peers in the same band: “housecleaning” (#79,601), “Hopkinton” (#79,598), “hooping” (#79,597). Among 2,646 “H” headwords, “horcrux” is #79,600. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

horcrux is uncommon English at frequency #79,600 among 2,646 “H” headwords, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

horcrux doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. Our dataset records no confusable match here, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

Etymologically, the entry records: Coined by author J. K. Rowling apparently at random; "invent[ed] […] after much transposition of syllables". Fans have pointed to the possible influence of Middle English hore (“iniquity, evil, sin”) and English crux (“the central or essential part”), among… The correct English form is horcrux, spelled H-O-R-C-R-U-X.

Definition

  1. 1
    In Harry Potter, an object in which a wizard has concealed a part of their soul through magic, rendering them immortal until the object is irreparably damaged or destroyed.
  2. 2
    Something in which one has invested a part of one's self; an object which allows for the preservation of memory, culture, etc.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. They stared at it as if it was the one ring or the holy grail or a horcrux, or perhaps all of them rolled into one. An empty, plastic cat food bowl.
  2. They were standard fit, vintage wash, pretty expensive, and I showed them to him and I said, “These are yours if you want them.” And do you know what he did? He actually flinched. Like these were haunted pants or something. Like these were Horcrux jeans with a piece of Lord Voldemort’s soul in them.

Etymology

Coined by author J. K. Rowling apparently at random; "invent[ed] […] after much transposition of syllables". Fans have pointed to the possible influence of Middle English hore (“iniquity, evil, sin”) and English crux (“the central or essential part”), among other theories. The term first appears in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2005).

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 "horcrux"?
"horcrux" is spelled H-O-R-C-R-U-X.
What does "horcrux" mean?
As a noun, "horcrux" means: In Harry Potter, an object in which a wizard has concealed a part of their soul through magic, rendering them immortal until the object is irreparably damaged or destroyed.
What is the origin of the word "horcrux"?
Coined by author J. K. Rowling apparently at random; "invent[ed] […] after much transposition of syllables". Fans have pointed to the possible influence of Middle English hore (“iniquity, evil, sin”) and English crux (“the central or essential par... 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 "horcrux", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

hooping#79,597higashi#79,583Herriot#79,581impaler#79,620

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list