timorous
/ˈtɪməɹəs/
"timorous" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“timorous” is outside the top-ranked English vocabulary, used as an adjective - the kind of word writers most often double-check.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 8
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Tending to be easily frightened; shy, timid.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | timorous |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | /ˈtɪməɹəs/ |
| Letters | 8 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “timorous” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for timorous is 8 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈtɪməɹəs/. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. Wiktionary records 7 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for timorous, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable English rules. 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 Late Middle English timorous (“(adjective) fearful, frightened; causing fear, dreadful, terrible; deferential, modest; (noun) timid people collectively”), borrowed from Old French temoros, temorous, from Medieval Latin timōrōsus, from timōr- (the stem … The correct English form is timorous, spelled T-I-M-O-R-O-U-S.
Definition
- 1Tending to be easily frightened; shy, timid.
- 2Feeling fear; afraid, fearful, frightened.
- 3Fastidious in dressing.
- 4Fired with intense feeling; passionate.
- 5Hard to manage; difficult, tiresome.
- 6Causing dread or fear; dreadful, terrible.
- 7Humble, modest; also, showing reverence; respectful, reverent, reverential.
Etymology
From Late Middle English timorous (“(adjective) fearful, frightened; causing fear, dreadful, terrible; deferential, modest; (noun) timid people collectively”), borrowed from Old French temoros, temorous, from Medieval Latin timōrōsus, from timōr- (the stem of Latin timor (“dread, fear”)) + -ōsus (suffix meaning ‘full of; prone to’). Timor is derived from timeō (“to be afraid of, fear”) (further origin uncertain, possibly from Proto-Indo-European *temH- (“dark”)) + -or (suffix forming third-declension masculine abstract nouns). Doublet of timoroso.
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 “timorous”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is T-I-M-O-R-O-U-S - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈtɪməɹəs/ (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.