intensifier

noun

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

"intensifier" is a 11-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“intensifier” is uncommon English (frequency #98,266 among 2,140 “I” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#98,266
frequency rank, English
2,140
“I” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - That which intensifies.

Corpus desk

Index EN-intensifier · intensifier · English

intensifier · rank #98,266 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #98,266
  • LEN-MEGA 11 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,140
  • PHOTO-FINISH insectivorous

Nearest frequency peer: insectivorous (-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 “intensifier”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for intensifier
PropertyValue
Headwordintensifier
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters11
Frequency rank#98,266
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “intensifier” in English

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

#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. Rare peers in the same band: “insectivorous” (#98,265), “interlink” (#98,267), “Ioannis” (#98,269). Among 2,140 “I” headwords, “intensifier” is #98,266. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

intensifier is uncommon English at frequency #98,266 among 2,140 “I” headwords, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

No generated misspelling entries exist for intensifier in our index, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: From intensify + -er; from the most common use of such terms, to intensify an adjective. The correct English form is intensifier, spelled I-N-T-E-N-S-I-F-I-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    That which intensifies.
  2. 2
    A word or particle that heightens the intensity of meaning of a term.
  3. 3
    A chemical agent used to intensify the lights or shadows of a photograph.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. “Plus-” and “doubleplus-” are both intensifiers that replace words of different extremities, and the words very and extremely respectively. So words like great, excellent and horrible are rendered redundant in Newspeak, replaced by “plusgood”, “doubleplusgood” and “doubleplusungood” respectively. Note how “un-” has to follow the intensifier prefix.

Etymology

From intensify + -er; from the most common use of such terms, to intensify an adjective.

This word in other languages

intensificateur(Français)Intensitätspartikel(Deutsch)

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 "intensifier"?
"intensifier" is spelled I-N-T-E-N-S-I-F-I-E-R.
What does "intensifier" mean?
As a noun, "intensifier" means: That which intensifies.
What is the origin of the word "intensifier"?
From intensify + -er; from the most common use of such terms, to intensify an adjective. 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 "intensifier", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 11 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

inheritable#98,262irrelevancy#98,270hopefulness#98,230generalship#98,155

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list