materialism

/məˈtɪɹiəlɪzəm/

//məˈtɪɹiəlɪzəm// noun

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

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

The verdict

“materialism” has 16 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #27,210. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#27,210
frequency rank, English
4,057
“M” headwords
16
tracked misspellings
3
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Constant concern over material possessions and wealth; a great or excessive regard for worldly concerns.

Corpus desk

Index EN-materialism · materialism · English

materialism · rank #27,210 · 16 variants · 3 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #27,210
  • LEN-MEGA 11 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 3 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 16 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,057
  • PHOTO-FINISH masquerade

Nearest frequency peer: masquerade (-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 “materialism”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “materialism” 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).

materialism vs materials
82% similar
materialism vs materialize
82% similar
materialism vs materialist
91% similar

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

Key facts for materialism
PropertyValue
Headwordmaterialism
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/məˈtɪɹiəlɪzəm/
Letters11
Frequency rank#27,210
Misspellings tracked16
Confusable pairs3
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “materialism”

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).materialismlands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “masquerade” (#27,209), “Maude” (#27,211), “Maitland” (#27,207). Among 4,057 “M” headwords, “materialism” is #27,210. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 16 spelling variants around materialism (IPA /məˈtɪɹiəlɪzəm/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #27,210 among 4,057 “M” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 16 likely wrong-spelling variants for materialism, with forms such as "amterialism", "maetrialism", and "mateiralism". 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 3 confusable-pair relationships, "materials", "materialize", "materialist", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from French matérialisme. By surface analysis, material + -ism. The correct English form is materialism, spelled M-A-T-E-R-I-A-L-I-S-M.

Definition

  1. 1
    Constant concern over material possessions and wealth; a great or excessive regard for worldly concerns.
  2. 2
    The philosophical belief that nothing exists beyond what is physical.
  3. 3
    Synonym of matter, material substances in the aggregate.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. We accept that a third of the population live on the poverty line. We accept that only a handful of the most exceptional of the children of the poor will make it through to a third-level education. We accept massive examples of greed and dishonesty in public life. We except the values of materialism. What do we expect then—to be left un-harassed, we who h…
  2. The result of the labours of philosophy appeared to be a total scepticism on the most important subjects of hu man duty and expectation. The irregular fears of a future state had been supplanted by the materialism of Epicurus; and this system—if system it may be called, which left them without a God, a providence, a morality, or a retribution—was the fash…

Etymology

Borrowed from French matérialisme. By surface analysis, material + -ism.

This word in other languages

materialismo(Español)matérialisme(Français)Materialismus(Deutsch)materialismo(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • amterialism
  • maetrialism
  • mateiralism
  • materailism
  • materiailsm
  • materialims
  • materialismm
  • materialissm
  • materiallism
  • materialsim
  • materilaism
  • materrialism
  • matreialism
  • matterialism
  • mmaterialism
  • mtaerialism

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

amterialism2maetrialism2mateiralism2materailism2materiailsm2materialims2materialismm1materialissm1
Edit distance from "materialism"

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 "materialism"?
"materialism" is spelled M-A-T-E-R-I-A-L-I-S-M. The IPA pronunciation is /məˈtɪɹiəlɪzəm/.
What does "materialism" mean?
As a noun, "materialism" means: Constant concern over material possessions and wealth; a great or excessive regard for worldly concerns.
What words are commonly confused with "materialism"?
"materialism" is commonly confused with "materials", "materialize", "materialist". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "materialism"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "materialism" is /məˈtɪɹiəlɪzəm/. 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 "materialism"?
Borrowed from French matérialisme. By surface analysis, material + -ism. 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 "materialism", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

importation#27,176holographic#27,172respiration#27,268dilapidated#27,124

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (16 here; floor ≥5).

motherland16 variantssecondhand16 variantsspringtime16 variantsdiffraction16 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list