quiver

/ˈkwɪvə/

//ˈkwɪvə// noun

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

"quiver" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“quiver” has 8 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #35,475. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#35,475
frequency rank, English
288
“Q” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
7
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A container for arrows, crossbow bolts or darts, such as those fired from a bow, crossbow or blowgun.

Corpus desk

Index EN-quiver · quiver · English

quiver · rank #35,475 · 8 variants · 7 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #35,475
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 7 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-MID 288
  • PHOTO-FINISH quantification

Nearest frequency peer: quantification (-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 “quiver”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “quiver” 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).

quiver vs quite
67% similar
quiver vs quiet
67% similar
quiver vs queer
67% similar

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

Key facts for quiver
PropertyValue
Headwordquiver
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈkwɪvə/
Letters6
Frequency rank#35,475
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs7
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “quiver”

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).quiverlands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “quantification” (#35,474), “qua” (#35,473), “Raffles” (#35,477). Among 288 “Q” headwords, “quiver” is #35,475. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around quiver (IPA /ˈkwɪvə/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #35,475 among 288 “Q” headwords. Wiktionary lists 5 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for quiver, with forms such as "qiuver", "qquiver", and "quievr". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 7 confusable-pair relationships, "quite", "quiet", "queer", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English quiver, from Anglo-Norman quivre, from Old Dutch cocare (source of Dutch koker, and cognate to Old English cocer (“quiver, case”)), from Proto-West Germanic *kokar (“container”), said to be from Hunnic, possibly from Proto-Mongolic *köke… The correct English form is quiver, spelled Q-U-I-V-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    A container for arrows, crossbow bolts or darts, such as those fired from a bow, crossbow or blowgun.
  2. 2
    A ready storage location for figurative tools or weapons.
  3. 3
    A vulva.
  4. 4
    The collective noun for cobras.
  5. 5
    A multidigraph, especially in the context of representation theory.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Don Pedro: Nay, if Cupid have not spent all his quiver in Venice, thou wilt quake for this shortly.
  2. Arrows were carried in quiver, called also an arrow case, which served for the magazine, arrows for immediate use were worn in the girdle.

Etymology

From Middle English quiver, from Anglo-Norman quivre, from Old Dutch cocare (source of Dutch koker, and cognate to Old English cocer (“quiver, case”)), from Proto-West Germanic *kokar (“container”), said to be from Hunnic, possibly from Proto-Mongolic *kökexür (“leather vessel for liquids”); see there for more. Replaced early modern cocker, the inherited reflex of that West Germanic word. The mathematical sense originated as German Köcher in a 1972 paper by Pierre Gabriel; it was likely chosen because a quiver contains arrows, while a digraph contains directed edges (also called "arrows").

This word in other languages

aljaba(Español)carquois(Français)Köcher(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • qiuver
  • qquiver
  • quievr
  • quiverr
  • quivre
  • quivver
  • quvier
  • uqiver

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of quiver - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

qiuver2qquiver1quievr2quiverr1quivre2quivver1quvier2uqiver2
Edit distance from "quiver"

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 "quiver"?
"quiver" is spelled Q-U-I-V-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈkwɪvə/.
What does "quiver" mean?
As a noun, "quiver" means: A container for arrows, crossbow bolts or darts, such as those fired from a bow, crossbow or blowgun.
What words are commonly confused with "quiver"?
"quiver" is commonly confused with "quite", "quiet", "queer". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "quiver"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "quiver" is /ˈkwɪvə/. 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 "quiver"?
From Middle English quiver, from Anglo-Norman quivre, from Old Dutch cocare (source of Dutch koker, and cognate to Old English cocer (“quiver, case”)), from Proto-West Germanic *kokar (“container”), said to be from Hunnic, possibly from Proto-Mong... 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 "quiver", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

pulsed#35,470refuel#35,481Posner#35,463Platte#35,461

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

Rawls8 variantsoverdo8 variantsoneness8 variantsNutella8 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list