reformatory

Name: reformatory, English Word Data
Creator: Wiktionary
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

/ɹəˈfɔɹməˌtɔɹi/

//ɹəˈfɔɹməˌtɔɹi// adj

By PlainSpell · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) · analyzed May 6, 2026

The verdict

“reformatory” is uncommon English (frequency #56,399 among 21,470 “R” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#56,399
frequency rank, English: 21,470
“R” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Of, pertaining to, or conducive to reform; reformative.

Key facts for reformatory
Property	Value
Headword	reformatory
Language	English
Part of speech	Adjective
IPA	/ɹəˈfɔɹməˌtɔɹi/
Letters	11
Frequency rank	#56,399
Misspellings tracked	0
Confusable pairs	0
Source	Wiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “reformatory” 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). reformatory lands here:

#56,399

#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

reformatory is uncommon English at frequency #56,399 among 21,470 “R” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed /ɹəˈfɔɹməˌtɔɹi/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Of, pertaining to, or conducive to reform; reformative.".

No misspelling variants are generated for reformatory in our index, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

No borrowing history is documented for this entry, so its spelling is best explained by sound-to-letter mapping rather than etymology. The correct English form is reformatory, spelled R-E-F-O-R-M-A-T-O-R-Y.

Definition

1
Of, pertaining to, or conducive to reform; reformative.

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 "reformatory"?

"reformatory" is spelled R-E-F-O-R-M-A-T-O-R-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ɹəˈfɔɹməˌtɔɹi/.

What does "reformatory" mean?

As an adjective, "reformatory" means: Of, pertaining to, or conducive to reform; reformative.

How do you pronounce "reformatory"?

The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "reformatory" is /ɹəˈfɔɹməˌtɔɹi/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.

What language does "reformatory" come from?

"reformatory" is a English word. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for this and other words across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German on PlainSpell.

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 “reformatory”

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

The one correct English spelling is R-E-F-O-R-M-A-T-O-R-Y - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
Say it as /ɹəˈfɔɹməˌtɔɹi/ (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.