interregnum

/ɪntəˈɹɛɡnəm/

//ɪntəˈɹɛɡnəm// noun

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

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

The verdict

“interregnum” is uncommon English (frequency #74,198 among 17,902 “I” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#74,198
frequency rank, English
17,902
“I” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A period of time between the end of one monarch's reign and the accession of their successor.

Corpus desk

Index EN-interregnum · interregnum · English

interregnum · rank #74,198 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #74,198
  • LEN-MEGA 11 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 17,902
  • PHOTO-FINISH intimation

Nearest frequency peer: intimation (+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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “interregnum”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “interregnum” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of May 6, 2026
Key facts for interregnum
PropertyValue
Headwordinterregnum
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ɪntəˈɹɛɡnəm/
Letters11
Frequency rank#74,198
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “interregnum” 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). interregnum lands here:

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

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

Rare enough to double-check

interregnum is uncommon English at frequency #74,198 among 17,902 “I” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ɪntəˈɹɛɡnəm/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 5 senses are on record.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for interregnum, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: Learned borrowing from Latin interrēgnum, from inter- (prefix meaning ‘between’) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₁entér (“between”)) + rēgnum (“reign; royal power”) (nominalized from the neuter of *rēgnus, from rēx (“king; ruler”, oblique stem rēg-) … The correct English form is interregnum, spelled I-N-T-E-R-R-E-G-N-U-M.

Definition

  1. 1
    A period of time between the end of one monarch's reign and the accession of their successor.
  2. 2
    A break in continuity; a gap, an intermission.
  3. 3
    A period of time between when a minister or pastor leaves a church and when a new one is installed.
  4. 4
    A period of time between the end of one political leader's term and the start of the term of their successor; a period of time during which normal executive leadership is interrupted or suspended, and a polity is either left without leadership or has only a temporary one.
  5. 5
    A temporary exercise of authority or rule during a period of time when there is no monarch or political leader.

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Latin interrēgnum, from inter- (prefix meaning ‘between’) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₁entér (“between”)) + rēgnum (“reign; royal power”) (nominalized from the neuter of *rēgnus, from rēx (“king; ruler”, oblique stem rēg-) + -nus (suffix forming adjectives), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₃reǵ- (“to righten; to straighten”)). The plural form interregna is a learned borrowing from Latin interrēgna.

This word in other languages

interregno(Español)interrègne(Français)Interregnum(Deutsch)interregno(Português)

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.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of May 6, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "interregnum"?
"interregnum" is spelled I-N-T-E-R-R-E-G-N-U-M. The IPA pronunciation is /ɪntəˈɹɛɡnəm/.
What does "interregnum" mean?
As a noun, "interregnum" means: A period of time between the end of one monarch's reign and the accession of their successor.
How do you pronounce "interregnum"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "interregnum" is /ɪntəˈɹɛɡnəm/. 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 "interregnum"?
Learned borrowing from Latin interrēgnum, from inter- (prefix meaning ‘between’) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₁entér (“between”)) + rēgnum (“reign; royal power”) (nominalized from the neuter of *rēgnus, from rēx (“king; ruler”, oblique s... 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 "interregnum", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

informality#74,194incarcerate#74,189joblessness#74,214helpfulness#74,164
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