trivial

/ˈtɹɪv.i.əl/

//ˈtɹɪv.i.əl// adj

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

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

The verdict

“trivial” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #11,991. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#11,991
frequency rank, English
3,151
“T” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
4
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Ignorable; of little significance or value.

Corpus desk

Index EN-trivial · trivial · English

trivial · rank #11,991 · 10 variants · 4 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #11,991
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 4 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,151
  • PHOTO-FINISH tougher

Nearest frequency peer: tougher (-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 “trivial”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “trivial” 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).

trivial vs trial
71% similar
trivial vs tribal
71% similar
trivial vs trivia
86% similar

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

Key facts for trivial
PropertyValue
Headwordtrivial
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈtɹɪv.i.əl/
Letters7
Frequency rank#11,991
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs4
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “trivial”

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).triviallands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “tougher” (#11,990), “unofficial” (#11,993), “tilt” (#11,988). Among 3,151 “T” headwords, “trivial” is #11,991. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around trivial (IPA /ˈtɹɪv.i.əl/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #11,991 among 3,151 “T” headwords. Wiktionary lists 9 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for trivial, with forms such as "rtivial", "tirvial", and "triival". 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 4 confusable-pair relationships, "trial", "tribal", "trivia", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: PIE word *tréyes * From Latin triviālis (“appropriate to the street-corner, commonplace, vulgar”), from trivium (“place where three roads meet”). Compare trivium, trivia. * From the distinction between trivium (“the lower division of the liberal arts; gram… The correct English form is trivial, spelled T-R-I-V-I-A-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    Ignorable; of little significance or value.
  2. 2
    Commonplace, ordinary.
  3. 3
    Concerned with or involving trivia.
  4. 4
    Relating to or designating the name of a species; specific as opposed to generic.
  5. 5
    Of, relating to, or being the simplest possible case.
  6. 6
    Of, relating to, or being the simplest possible case.
  7. 7
    Self-evident.
  8. 8
    Pertaining to the trivium.
  9. 9
    Indistinguishable in case of truth or falsity.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. "All which details, I have no doubt, Jones, who reads this book at his Club, will pronounce to be excessively foolish, trivial, twaddling, and ultra-sentimental."
  2. In fact, the influence of signage in a certain area may exist anywhere on a continuum from profoundly effective to utterly trivial or completely insignificant, irrespective of the intent motivating the signs.

Etymology

PIE word *tréyes * From Latin triviālis (“appropriate to the street-corner, commonplace, vulgar”), from trivium (“place where three roads meet”). Compare trivium, trivia. * From the distinction between trivium (“the lower division of the liberal arts; grammar, logic and rhetoric”) and quadrivium (“the higher division of the seven liberal arts in the Middle Ages, composed of geometry, astronomy, arithmetic, and music”).

Synonyms

ignorablenegligibletriflingfrothy

Antonyms

nontrivialimportantsignificantradicalfundamental

This word in other languages

trivial(Español)trivial(Français)unbedeutend(Deutsch)trivial(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • rtivial
  • tirvial
  • triival
  • trivail
  • triviall
  • trivila
  • trivvial
  • trrivial
  • trviial
  • ttrivial

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of trivial - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

rtivial2tirvial2triival2trivail2triviall1trivila2trivvial1trrivial1
Edit distance from "trivial"

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 "trivial"?
"trivial" is spelled T-R-I-V-I-A-L. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈtɹɪv.i.əl/.
What does "trivial" mean?
As an adjective, "trivial" means: Ignorable; of little significance or value.
What words are commonly confused with "trivial"?
"trivial" is commonly confused with "trial", "tribal", "trivia". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "trivial"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "trivial" is /ˈtɹɪv.i.əl/. 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 "trivial"?
PIE word *tréyes * From Latin triviālis (“appropriate to the street-corner, commonplace, vulgar”), from trivium (“place where three roads meet”). Compare trivium, trivia. * From the distinction between trivium (“the lower division of the liberal ... 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 "trivial", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

tougher#11,990Brennan#12,013buzzing#12,015caliber#12,016

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (10 here; floor ≥5).

swings10 variantspleaded10 variantsFrankie10 variantsgraffiti10 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list