magnum opus
/ˌmæɡnəm ˈəʊpəs/
"magnum-opus" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“magnum opus” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 11
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A great or important work of literature, music or art, a masterpiece.
Corpus desk
Index EN-magnum-opus · magnum opus · English
magnum opus · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-MEGA 11 letters
- VOW-4 4 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "M" thin
- PHOTO-UNK Peer pending
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.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | magnum opus |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˌmæɡnəm ˈəʊpəs/ |
| Letters | 11 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “magnum opus” in English
Rare enough to double-check
magnum opus is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˌmæɡnəm ˈəʊpəs/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.
No misspelling variants are generated for magnum opus in our index, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Latin magnum opus (“great work”). The correct English form is magnum opus, spelled M-A-G-N-U-M- -O-P-U-S.
Definition
- 1A great or important work of literature, music or art, a masterpiece.
- 2The best, most popular, or most renowned achievement of an author or artist, representing their major life effort.
- 3The process of working with the prima materia to create the philosopher's stone.
Recorded use
Wiktionary exampleThese source excerpts show how magnum opus appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
The 1949 novel Nineteen Eighty-Four is widely considered to be George Orwell's magnum opus.
Etymology
From Latin magnum opus (“great work”).
Synonyms
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.