sanctimony
/ˈsæŋk.tɪ.mə.ni/
"sanctimony" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“sanctimony” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 10
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A hypocritical form of excessive piety, considered to be an affectation merely for public show.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | sanctimony |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈsæŋk.tɪ.mə.ni/ |
| Letters | 10 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “sanctimony” sits in English frequency
Rare enough to double-check
sanctimony is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈsæŋk.tɪ.mə.ni/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.
The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for sanctimony, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle French sanctimonie, from Latin sānctimōnia (“sanctity, sacredness; purity, chastity”), from sanctus (“holy”) + -monia (“action or result of an action”). The correct English form is sanctimony, spelled S-A-N-C-T-I-M-O-N-Y.
Definition
- 1A hypocritical form of excessive piety, considered to be an affectation merely for public show.
- 2A state of holiness.
Etymology
From Middle French sanctimonie, from Latin sānctimōnia (“sanctity, sacredness; purity, chastity”), from sanctus (“holy”) + -monia (“action or result of an action”).
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 “sanctimony”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is S-A-N-C-T-I-M-O-N-Y - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈsæŋk.tɪ.mə.ni/ (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.