shrivel

/ˈʃɹɪvəl/

//ˈʃɹɪvəl// verb

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

"shrivel" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“shrivel” is uncommon English (frequency #60,470 among 6,566 “S” headwords), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#60,470
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To collapse inward; to crumble.

Corpus desk

Index EN-shrivel · shrivel · English

shrivel · rank #60,470 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #60,470
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH shrike

Nearest frequency peer: shrike (-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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “shrivel”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “shrivel” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for shrivel
PropertyValue
Headwordshrivel
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ˈʃɹɪvəl/
Letters7
Frequency rank#60,470
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “shrivel” sits in English frequency

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).shrivellands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “shrike” (#60,469), “sib” (#60,471), “shortcake” (#60,468). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

shrivel is uncommon English at frequency #60,470 among 6,566 “S” headwords, classed as averb, transcribed /ˈʃɹɪvəl/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

shrivel doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

Etymologically, the entry records: First recorded as shriveled (“shrivelled”), probably of North Germanic origin related to dialectal Swedish skryvla (“to wrinkle, shrivel”); perhaps ultimately related to Proto-Germanic *skrinkwaną (“to shrivel, shrink”) or *skrimpaną (“to shrink”). The correct English form is shrivel, spelled S-H-R-I-V-E-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    To collapse inward; to crumble.
  2. 2
    To become wrinkled.
  3. 3
    To draw into wrinkles.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The plant shrivelled from lack of water.
  2. His fingers were shriveled from being in the bath for too long.

Etymology

First recorded as shriveled (“shrivelled”), probably of North Germanic origin related to dialectal Swedish skryvla (“to wrinkle, shrivel”); perhaps ultimately related to Proto-Germanic *skrinkwaną (“to shrivel, shrink”) or *skrimpaną (“to shrink”).

This word in other languages

arrugarse(Español)se flétrir(Français)schrumpeln(Deutsch)murchar(Português)

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 "shrivel"?
"shrivel" is spelled S-H-R-I-V-E-L. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈʃɹɪvəl/.
What does "shrivel" mean?
As a verb, "shrivel" means: To collapse inward; to crumble.
How do you pronounce "shrivel"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "shrivel" is /ˈʃɹɪvəl/. 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 "shrivel"?
First recorded as shriveled (“shrivelled”), probably of North Germanic origin related to dialectal Swedish skryvla (“to wrinkle, shrivel”); perhaps ultimately related to Proto-Germanic *skrinkwaną (“to shrivel, shrink”) or *skrimpaną (“to shrink”). 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 "shrivel", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

sneered#60,478soiling#60,481shafted#60,456Schenck#60,446

What to do next

You've looked up "shrivel". Here's where to go from here.

  • Usage frequency rank #60,470 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more English words in the "S" letter cohort. S–Z browse
  • PlainSpell rotates a curated Word of the Day from the English corpus, a passive way to discover vocabulary. Word of the Day

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

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