vary
/ˈvɛəɹi/verb
vary is spelled V-A-R-Y: 4 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 18 times per million words in written English, the 4,667th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). People search “vary vs very” about 880 times a month (Google, United States). As a verb, vary means “To change with time or a similar parameter” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in vary?
| Letters | 4: V-A-R-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 18 times per million words; the 4,667th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Pairs people search | |
| Rhymes with | |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); Bing searches in the United States: the average month from September 2025 to August 2026 (Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, read September 30, 2026); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is vary?
Vary appears 18 times per million words in written English, the 4,667th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce vary?
- UK /ˈvɛəɹi/
- British /ˈvɛːɹɪj/
- US /ˈvɛəɹi/
Vary has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-ne-vary.ogg, En-us-ne-1-vary.ogg, En-us-vary.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with vary
Word pairs people search, with the monthly searches for “a vs b” (G: Google, B: Bing, United States).
Sources: Google and Bing searches (September 2025 to August 2026, through DataForSEO); English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
What rhymes with vary?
6 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as vary from its last stressed vowel (/ɛəɹi/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: arvy.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of vary
- varies present, singular, he/she/it
- varying participle, present
- varied participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does vary mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To change with time or a similar parameter.
He varies his magic tricks so as to minimize the possibility that any given audience member will see the same trick twice.
- 2
To institute a change in, from a current state; to modify.
You should vary your diet. Eating just bread will do you harm in the end.
- 3
Not to remain constant: to change with time or a similar parameter.
His mood varies by the hour.
- 4
To display differences.
The sprouting tendency of potatoes varies between cultivars, years and places of growing.
- 5
To be or act different from the usual.
I'm not comfortable with 3.Nc3 in the Caro-Kann, so I decided to vary and play exd5.
- 6
To make of different kinds; to make different from one another; to diversify; to variegate.
- 7
To embellish; to change fancifully; to present under new aspects, as of form, key, measure, etc. See variation.
- 8
obsoleteTo disagree; to be at variance or in dissension.
noun
- 1
obsoletealteration; change.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Vary in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does vary come from?
From Middle English varien, from Old French varier, from Latin variō (“to change, alter, make different”), from varius (“different, various”); see various.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).