necrology

/nɛˈkɹɒlədʒi/

//nɛˈkɹɒlədʒi// noun

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

The verdict

“necrology” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
9
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A church register containing the names of those connected with the church who have died.

Corpus desk

Index EN-necrology · necrology · English

necrology · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "N" 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.

Key facts for necrology
PropertyValue
Headwordnecrology
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/nɛˈkɹɒlədʒi/
Letters9
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “necrology” in English

necrologyranks outside the top 100,000 English headwords, in the long tail of specialist, archaic, or seldom-used vocabulary, exactly the territory where a reader stops mid-sentence to double-check spelling.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

necrology is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed /nɛˈkɹɒlədʒi/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.

Zero misspellings are on record for necrology in our index, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From necro- + -logy. The correct English form is necrology, spelled N-E-C-R-O-L-O-G-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    A church register containing the names of those connected with the church who have died.
  2. 2
    A listing of people who have died during a specific period of time.
  3. 3
    A notice of death.
  4. 4
    The study of death or the dead.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Voltaire and Rousseau died in 1778, d'Alembert in 1783, and Diderot in 1784, while leading salonnières Mesdames du Deffand and d'Épinay passed away in 1780 and 1783. Beneath this sombre necrology, important shifts were occurring in the workings of the public sphere and in the sites in which opinion was constructed.
  2. 2006 Marc Fisher; We Loved That Airline To Death; Washington Post The fare structure is one reason Independence Air has joined a necrology of low-cost carriers that stretches over four decades.

Etymology

From necro- + -logy.

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.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "necrology"?
"necrology" is spelled N-E-C-R-O-L-O-G-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /nɛˈkɹɒlədʒi/.
What does "necrology" mean?
As a noun, "necrology" means: A church register containing the names of those connected with the church who have died.
How do you pronounce "necrology"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "necrology" is /nɛˈkɹɒlədʒi/. 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 "necrology"?
From necro- + -logy. 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list