intricacy

/ˈɪn.tɹɪ.kə.si/

//ˈɪn.tɹɪ.kə.si// noun

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

"intricacy" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“intricacy” is uncommon English (frequency #64,448 among 2,140 “I” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#64,448
frequency rank, English
2,140
“I” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The state or quality of being intricate or entangled.

Corpus desk

Index EN-intricacy · intricacy · English

intricacy · rank #64,448 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #64,448
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,140
  • PHOTO-FINISH institutional…

Nearest frequency peer: institutionalization (-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 “intricacy”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for intricacy
PropertyValue
Headwordintricacy
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈɪn.tɹɪ.kə.si/
Letters9
Frequency rank#64,448
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “intricacy” 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).intricacyfalls 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: “institutionalization” (#64,447), “irksome” (#64,449), “Ironside” (#64,450). Among 2,140 “I” headwords, “intricacy” is #64,448. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

intricacy is uncommon English at frequency #64,448 among 2,140 “I” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈɪn.tɹɪ.kə.si/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for intricacy, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: From intricate + -cy. The correct English form is intricacy, spelled I-N-T-R-I-C-A-C-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    The state or quality of being intricate or entangled.
  2. 2
    Perplexity.
  3. 3
    Something which is intricate or complex.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. the intricacy of a knot
  2. the intricacy of accounts

Etymology

From intricate + -cy.

This word in other languages

vericuetos(Español)Komplexität(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 "intricacy"?
"intricacy" is spelled I-N-T-R-I-C-A-C-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɪn.tɹɪ.kə.si/.
What does "intricacy" mean?
As a noun, "intricacy" means: The state or quality of being intricate or entangled.
How do you pronounce "intricacy"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "intricacy" is /ˈɪn.tɹɪ.kə.si/. 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 "intricacy"?
From intricate + -cy. 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 "intricacy", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

ignoramus#64,435Hutcheson#64,431heterodox#64,422hemolytic#64,419

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list