marvellous

/ˈmɑːvələs/

//ˈmɑːvələs// adj

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

"marvellous" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“marvellous” has 12 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #17,182. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#17,182
frequency rank, English
4,057
“M” headwords
12
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Exciting wonder or surprise; astonishing; wonderful.

Corpus desk

Index EN-marvellous · marvellous · English

marvellous · rank #17,182 · 12 variants · 2 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #17,182
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 2 pairs
  • VAR-MID 12 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,057
  • PHOTO-FINISH matchup

Nearest frequency peer: matchup (+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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “marvellous”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “marvellous” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

marvellous vs marvelous
90% similar
marvellous vs Marcellus
70% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for marvellous
PropertyValue
Headwordmarvellous
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈmɑːvələs/
Letters10
Frequency rank#17,182
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “marvellous”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).marvellouslands here:

#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. Same rarity band neighbours include “matchup” (#17,183), “mammoth” (#17,180), “meh” (#17,184). Among 4,057 “M” headwords, “marvellous” is #17,182. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 12 spelling variants around marvellous (IPA /ˈmɑːvələs/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #17,182 among 4,057 “M” headwords. Dominant gloss: "Exciting wonder or surprise; astonishing; wonderful.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for marvellous, with forms such as "amrvellous", "marevllous", and "marrvellous". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 2 confusable-pair relationships, "marvelous", "Marcellus", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: First attested from 1300 as Middle English merveilous, from Old French merveillus, from merveille (“a wonder”) + -us. Doublet of merveilleux. See also marvel. The correct English form is marvellous, spelled M-A-R-V-E-L-L-O-U-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    Exciting wonder or surprise; astonishing; wonderful.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. I went to a marvellous party last week.
  2. At first glance, importance sampling seems like a marvellous solution to any posterior simulation problem.

Etymology

First attested from 1300 as Middle English merveilous, from Old French merveillus, from merveille (“a wonder”) + -us. Doublet of merveilleux. See also marvel.

This word in other languages

maravilloso(Español)merveilleux(Français)wunderbar(Deutsch)maravilhoso(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • amrvellous
  • marevllous
  • marrvellous
  • marvellosu
  • marvellouss
  • marvelluos
  • marvelolus
  • marvlelous
  • marvvellous
  • mavrellous
  • mmarvellous
  • mravellous

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of marvellous - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

amrvellous2marevllous2marrvellous1marvellosu2marvellouss1marvelluos2marvelolus2marvlelous2
Edit distance from "marvellous"

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 "marvellous"?
"marvellous" is spelled M-A-R-V-E-L-L-O-U-S. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈmɑːvələs/.
What does "marvellous" mean?
As an adjective, "marvellous" means: Exciting wonder or surprise; astonishing; wonderful.
What words are commonly confused with "marvellous"?
"marvellous" is commonly confused with "marvelous", "Marcellus". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "marvellous"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "marvellous" is /ˈmɑːvələs/. 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 "marvellous"?
First attested from 1300 as Middle English merveilous, from Old French merveillus, from merveille (“a wonder”) + -us. Doublet of merveilleux. See also marvel. 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 "marvellous", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 10 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

practising#17,213precaution#17,214reassuring#17,220scattering#17,235

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (12 here; floor ≥5).

newcomer12 variantsleftover12 variantspanicked12 variantshousewife12 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list