ostracism

/ˈɒstɹəsɪz(ə)m/

//ˈɒstɹəsɪz(ə)m// noun

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

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

The verdict

“ostracism” is uncommon English (frequency #63,861 among 15,494 “O” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#63,861
frequency rank, English
15,494
“O” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - In ancient Athens (and some other cities), the temporary banishment by popular vote of a citizen considered dangerous to the state.

Key facts for ostracism
PropertyValue
Headwordostracism
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈɒstɹəsɪz(ə)m/
Letters9
Frequency rank#63,861
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “ostracism” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). ostracism lands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

ostracism is uncommon English at frequency #63,861 among 15,494 “O” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈɒstɹəsɪz(ə)m/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

No misspelling variants are generated for ostracism in our index, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. Our dataset records no confusable match here, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

Etymologically, the entry records: Learned borrowing from Ancient Greek ὀστρακισμός (ostrakismós, “banishment by means of voting with pot shards”), from ὀστρακίζω (ostrakízō, “ostracize”) + -ισμός (-ismós, “-ism”), from ὄστρακον (óstrakon, “clay pot”). The correct English form is ostracism, spelled O-S-T-R-A-C-I-S-M.

Definition

  1. 1
    In ancient Athens (and some other cities), the temporary banishment by popular vote of a citizen considered dangerous to the state.
  2. 2
    Banishment by some general consent.
  3. 3
    Temporary exclusion from a community or society.

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Ancient Greek ὀστρακισμός (ostrakismós, “banishment by means of voting with pot shards”), from ὀστρακίζω (ostrakízō, “ostracize”) + -ισμός (-ismós, “-ism”), from ὄστρακον (óstrakon, “clay pot”).

This word in other languages

ostracismo(Español)ostracisme(Français)Scherbengericht(Deutsch)ostracismo(Português)

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 "ostracism"?
"ostracism" is spelled O-S-T-R-A-C-I-S-M. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɒstɹəsɪz(ə)m/.
What does "ostracism" mean?
As a noun, "ostracism" means: In ancient Athens (and some other cities), the temporary banishment by popular vote of a citizen considered dangerous to the state.
How do you pronounce "ostracism"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "ostracism" is /ˈɒstɹəsɪz(ə)m/. 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 "ostracism"?
Learned borrowing from Ancient Greek ὀστρακισμός (ostrakismós, “banishment by means of voting with pot shards”), from ὀστρακίζω (ostrakízō, “ostracize”) + -ισμός (-ismós, “-ism”), from ὄστρακον (óstrakon, “clay pot”). 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.

Using “ostracism”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is O-S-T-R-A-C-I-S-M - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈɒstɹəsɪz(ə)m/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words

Other uncommon English words near this rank

Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list