strenuous

/ˈstɹɛ.nju.əs/

//ˈstɹɛ.nju.əs// adj

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

"strenuous" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“strenuous” has 13 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #24,920. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#24,920
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
13
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Having great vigour or energy; forceful.

Corpus desk

Index EN-strenuous · strenuous · English

strenuous · rank #24,920 · 13 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #24,920
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 13 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH strikingly

Nearest frequency peer: strikingly (+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 “strenuous”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “strenuous” 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).

strenuous vs strenuously
82% similar

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

Key facts for strenuous
PropertyValue
Headwordstrenuous
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈstɹɛ.nju.əs/
Letters9
Frequency rank#24,920
Misspellings tracked13
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “strenuous”

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).strenuouslands 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 “strikingly” (#24,921), “stockpile” (#24,918), “stitching” (#24,917). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “strenuous” is #24,920. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 13 spelling variants around strenuous (IPA /ˈstɹɛ.nju.əs/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #24,920 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 13 likely wrong-spelling variants for strenuous, with forms such as "srtenuous", "sstrenuous", and "sternuous". 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 1 confusable-pair relationship, "strenuously", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Latin strenuus (“quick”). The correct English form is strenuous, spelled S-T-R-E-N-U-O-U-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    Having great vigour or energy; forceful.
  2. 2
    Requiring great exertion; very laborious.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. strenuous exercise
  2. strenuous activity

Etymology

From Latin strenuus (“quick”).

This word in other languages

esforzado(Español)vigoureux(Français)anstrengend(Deutsch)exigente(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • srtenuous
  • sstrenuous
  • sternuous
  • strennuous
  • strenouus
  • strenuosu
  • strenuouss
  • strenuuos
  • streunous
  • strneuous
  • strrenuous
  • sttrenuous
  • tsrenuous

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of strenuous - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

srtenuous2sstrenuous1sternuous2strennuous1strenouus2strenuosu2strenuouss1strenuuos2
Edit distance from "strenuous"

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 "strenuous"?
"strenuous" is spelled S-T-R-E-N-U-O-U-S. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈstɹɛ.nju.əs/.
What does "strenuous" mean?
As an adjective, "strenuous" means: Having great vigour or energy; forceful.
What words are commonly confused with "strenuous"?
"strenuous" is commonly confused with "strenuously". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "strenuous"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "strenuous" is /ˈstɹɛ.nju.əs/. 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 "strenuous"?
From Latin strenuus (“quick”). 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 "strenuous", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

stockpile#24,918stitching#24,917surcharge#24,926Spielberg#24,910

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (13 here; floor ≥5).

throbbing13 variantstreasured13 variantstungsten13 variantsworkable13 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list