sever

/ˈsɛv.ɚ/

//ˈsɛv.ɚ// verb

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

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

The verdict

“sever” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #23,989 in English word frequency and used as a verb.

#23,989
frequency rank, English
5
letters
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - To cut free.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

sever vs Sven
40% similar
sever vs super
60% similar
sever vs Steve
40% similar

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

Key facts for sever
PropertyValue
Headwordsever
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ˈsɛv.ɚ/
Letters5
Frequency rank#23,989
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “sever” 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). sever lands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for sever is 5 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈsɛv.ɚ/. Corpus data places it at rank #23,989 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 4 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for sever, with forms such as "esver", "seevr", and "severr". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "Sven", "super", "Steve", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English severen, from Old French sevrer, from Latin separāre (“to separate”), from se- (“apart”) + parāre (“provide, arrange”). Doublet of separate, from the past participle of that Latin verb. The correct English form is sever, spelled S-E-V-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    To cut free.
  2. 2
    To suffer disjunction; to be parted or separated.
  3. 3
    To make a separation or distinction; to distinguish.
  4. 4
    To disconnect; to disunite; to terminate.

Etymology

From Middle English severen, from Old French sevrer, from Latin separāre (“to separate”), from se- (“apart”) + parāre (“provide, arrange”). Doublet of separate, from the past participle of that Latin verb.

Synonyms

becutcut off

This word in other languages

cortar(Español)rompre(Français)abtrennen(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: esver,seevr,severr,sevver,ssever,sveer

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

esver2seevr2severr1sevver1ssever1sveer2
Edit distance from "sever"

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 "sever"?
"sever" is spelled S-E-V-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈsɛv.ɚ/.
What does "sever" mean?
As a verb, "sever" means: To cut free.
What words are commonly confused with "sever"?
"sever" is commonly confused with "Sven", "super", "Steve". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "sever"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "sever" is /ˈsɛv.ɚ/. 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 "sever"?
From Middle English severen, from Old French sevrer, from Latin separāre (“to separate”), from se- (“apart”) + parāre (“provide, arrange”). Doublet of separate, from the past participle of that Latin verb. 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 “sever”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is S-E-V-E-R - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈsɛv.ɚ/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “Sven” - see the side-by-side comparison. sever vs Sven
  • 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