petrify
/ˈpɛ.tɹəˌfaɪ/
"petrify" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“petrify” is outside the top-ranked English vocabulary, used as a verb - the kind of word writers most often double-check.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 7
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - To turn to stone: to harden organic matter by permeating with water and depositing dissolved minerals.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | petrify |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| IPA | /ˈpɛ.tɹəˌfaɪ/ |
| Letters | 7 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “petrify” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for petrify is 7 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈpɛ.tɹəˌfaɪ/. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. Wiktionary records 6 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
No generated misspelling entries exist for petrify in our index, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle French pétrifier, from Medieval Latin petrificāre, from Latin petra (“rock”), from Ancient Greek πέτρα (pétra, “rock”) + -ficāre, from facere (“do, make”), equivalent to petro- + -ify. The correct English form is petrify, spelled P-E-T-R-I-F-Y.
Definition
- 1To turn to stone: to harden organic matter by permeating with water and depositing dissolved minerals.
- 2To produce rigidity akin to stone.
- 3To immobilize with fright.
- 4To become stone, or of a stony hardness, as organic matter by calcareous deposits.
- 5To become stony, callous, or obdurate.
- 6To make callous or obdurate; to stupefy; to paralyze; to transform; as by petrification.
Etymology
From Middle French pétrifier, from Medieval Latin petrificāre, from Latin petra (“rock”), from Ancient Greek πέτρα (pétra, “rock”) + -ficāre, from facere (“do, make”), equivalent to petro- + -ify.
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
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Using “petrify”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is P-E-T-R-I-F-Y - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈpɛ.tɹəˌfaɪ/ (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
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.