quartary

/ˈkwɔːtəɹi/

//ˈkwɔːtəɹi// noun

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

"quartary" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

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

Unranked
below top-frequency English
8
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Synonym of quartarius, quarter-sextarius, a Roman unit of liquid measure equivalent to about 0.14 L

Key facts for quartary
PropertyValue
Headwordquartary
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈkwɔːtəɹi/
Letters8
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “quartary” sits in English frequency

quartary falls outside the top-100,000 ranked English words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

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

Rare enough to double-check

quartary is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈkwɔːtəɹi/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

quartary has no tracked misspelling variants, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. 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 Latin quārtārius (“quarter-sextarius, quarter-pint”), from quārtus (“fourth”) + -ārius (“-ary: forming adj.”). Equivalent to quart + -ary. Doublet of quartarius. The correct English form is quartary, spelled Q-U-A-R-T-A-R-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    Synonym of quartarius, quarter-sextarius, a Roman unit of liquid measure equivalent to about 0.14 L
  2. 2
    A Roman unit of mass, one-fourth of a Roman pound.

Etymology

From Latin quārtārius (“quarter-sextarius, quarter-pint”), from quārtus (“fourth”) + -ārius (“-ary: forming adj.”). Equivalent to quart + -ary. Doublet of quartarius.

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 "quartary"?
"quartary" is spelled Q-U-A-R-T-A-R-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈkwɔːtəɹi/.
What does "quartary" mean?
As a noun, "quartary" means: Synonym of quartarius, quarter-sextarius, a Roman unit of liquid measure equivalent to about 0.14 L
How do you pronounce "quartary"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "quartary" is /ˈkwɔːtəɹi/. 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 "quartary"?
From Latin quārtārius (“quarter-sextarius, quarter-pint”), from quārtus (“fourth”) + -ārius (“-ary: forming adj.”). Equivalent to quart + -ary. Doublet of quartarius. 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 “quartary”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is Q-U-A-R-T-A-R-Y - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈkwɔːtəɹi/ (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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list