levity
/ˈlɛ.vɪ.ti/noun
levity is spelled L-E-V-I-T-Y: 6 letters and 3 syllables. It appears about once in every 3 million words in written English, the 47,073rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, levity means “A lightness of manner or speech, frivolity; flippancy; a lack of appropriate seriousness; an inclination to make a joke of serious matters” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of levity is levities.
How many letters and syllables are in levity?
| Letters | 6: L-E-V-I-T-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 3 million words; the 47,073rd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is levity?
Levity appears about once in every 3 million words in written English, the 47,073rd most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce levity?
- US /ˈlɛ.vɪ.ti/
Levity has 3 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-levity.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of levity
- levities plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does levity mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A lightness of manner or speech, frivolity; flippancy; a lack of appropriate seriousness; an inclination to make a joke of serious matters.
An attempt to inject a little levity into the proceedings.
- 2
obsoleteA lack of steadiness.
- 3
The state or quality of being light, buoyancy.
- 4
A lighthearted or frivolous act.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Levity in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | nonchalance, légèreté , frivolité |
| German | Lockerheit, Unbeschwertheit, Ungezwungenheit, Leichtfertigkeit, Leichtsinn, Leichtigkeit |
| Portuguese | leveza , leviandade |
| Spanish | ligereza , ligerez, liviandad, levedad, ingravidez |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does levity come from?
Coined in 1564, from Latin levitās (“lightness, frivolity”), from levis (“lightness (in weight)”). Cognate to lever, and more distantly, light.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).