# vanity

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈvænɪti/ · frequency rank #10,633

## Definitions
1. That which is vain, futile, or worthless; that which is of no value, use or profit.
2. Excessive pride in or admiration of one's own abilities, appearance, achievements, or possessions.
3. A dressing table used to apply makeup, preen, and coif hair, in which the table is normally quite low and similar to a desk.
4. A washbasin installed into a permanently fixed storage unit, used as an item of bathroom furniture.
5. Any idea, theory or statement that is without foundation.

## Etymology
From va(i)n + -ity, from Middle English vanite, from Old French vanité, from Latin vānitas, from vānus, whence English vain. Doublet of vanitas.

## Easily confused with
- **verity** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/vanity-vs-verity)
- **variety** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/vanity-vs-variety)
- **varsity** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/vanity-vs-varsity)
- **vanish** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/vanish-vs-vanity)

## Common misspellings (9)
`avnity`, `vainty`, `vanitty`, `vanityy`, `vaniyt`, `vannity`, `vantiy`, `vnaity`, `vvanity`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/vanity