riven

/ˈɹɪvən/

//ˈɹɪvən// verb

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

"riven" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“riven” has 7 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #40,878. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#40,878
frequency rank, English
3,094
“R” headwords
7
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - past participle of rive

Corpus desk

Index EN-riven · riven · English

riven · rank #40,878 · 7 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #40,878
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 7 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,094
  • PHOTO-FINISH Roan

Nearest frequency peer: Roan (+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 “riven”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “riven” 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).

riven vs rove
60% similar
riven vs river
80% similar
riven vs rover
60% similar

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

Key facts for riven
PropertyValue
Headwordriven
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ˈɹɪvən/
Letters5
Frequency rank#40,878
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “riven”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).rivenlands here:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “Roan” (#40,879), “resurfacing” (#40,876), “Rodrigues” (#40,880). Among 3,094 “R” headwords, “riven” is #40,878. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 7 spelling variants around riven (IPA /ˈɹɪvən/), averb. Corpus frequency is #40,878 among 3,094 “R” headwords. Dominant gloss: "past participle of rive".

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for riven, with forms such as "irven", "rievn", and "rivenn". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "rove", "river", "rover", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English riven, past participle of rive (“to rive”). Compare Old Norse rifinn, past participle of Old Norse rífa (“to pick, scratch, rive”). The correct English form is riven, spelled R-I-V-E-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    past participle of rive

Etymology

From Middle English riven, past participle of rive (“to rive”). Compare Old Norse rifinn, past participle of Old Norse rífa (“to pick, scratch, rive”).

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • irven
  • rievn
  • rivenn
  • rivne
  • rivven
  • rriven
  • rvien

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of riven - 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.

irven2rievn2rivenn1rivne2rivven1rriven1rvien2
Edit distance from "riven"

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 "riven"?
"riven" is spelled R-I-V-E-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɹɪvən/.
What does "riven" mean?
As a verb, "riven" means: past participle of rive
What words are commonly confused with "riven"?
"riven" is commonly confused with "rove", "river", "rover". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "riven"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "riven" is /ˈɹɪvən/. 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 "riven"?
From Middle English riven, past participle of rive (“to rive”). Compare Old Norse rifinn, past participle of Old Norse rífa (“to pick, scratch, rive”). 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 "riven", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

skids#40,894pygmy#40,856spiro#40,900pissy#40,837

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (7 here; floor ≥5).

towne7 variantsverso7 variantsmettle7 variantsvroom7 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list