velociraptor

/vəˌlɒsɪˈɹæptɚ/

//vəˌlɒsɪˈɹæptɚ// noun

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

"velociraptor" is a 12-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“velociraptor” is uncommon English (frequency #64,820 among 969 “V” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#64,820
frequency rank, English
969
“V” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A small agile dinosaur, of the genus Velociraptor, having sickle-shaped claws. It is also thought to have had a feathered coat. Fossils have been found in Late Cretaceous deposits Mongolia and Chin...

Corpus desk

Index EN-velociraptor · velociraptor · English

velociraptor · rank #64,820 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #64,820
  • LEN-MEGA 12 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 969
  • PHOTO-FINISH veined

Nearest frequency peer: veined (-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.

Long-tail ranks near “velociraptor”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “velociraptor” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for velociraptor
PropertyValue
Headwordvelociraptor
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/vəˌlɒsɪˈɹæptɚ/
Letters12
Frequency rank#64,820
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “velociraptor” in English

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).velociraptorfalls in this rarity band:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Rare peers in the same band: “veined” (#64,819), “viticulture” (#64,821), “Viviane” (#64,822). Among 969 “V” headwords, “velociraptor” is #64,820. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

velociraptor is uncommon English at frequency #64,820 among 969 “V” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /vəˌlɒsɪˈɹæptɚ/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for velociraptor, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: From New Latin Velociraptor genus name, from vēlōx (“swift”) + raptor (“thief”). The application to Deinonychus came about because Gregory S. Paul proposed that Velociraptor and Deinonychus were the same genus and this idea was taken up in the book leading … The correct English form is velociraptor, spelled V-E-L-O-C-I-R-A-P-T-O-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    A small agile dinosaur, of the genus Velociraptor, having sickle-shaped claws. It is also thought to have had a feathered coat. Fossils have been found in Late Cretaceous deposits Mongolia and China (around 75-71 mya).
  2. 2
    Also Deinonychus.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Bipedal hadrosaurs, great hulking lambeosaurs, certain rhino-like ceratopsians and relatives of the velociraptors - all large and probably able swimmers - had the greatest success.
  2. This is my favorite velociraptor, and that is saying a lot....That this species is sunk into Velociraptor is rather unfortunate, because the name Deinonychus Ostrom 1969a is a fine one.

Etymology

From New Latin Velociraptor genus name, from vēlōx (“swift”) + raptor (“thief”). The application to Deinonychus came about because Gregory S. Paul proposed that Velociraptor and Deinonychus were the same genus and this idea was taken up in the book leading to the Jurassic Park film series.

This word in other languages

velocirráptor(Español)vélociraptor(Français)

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 "velociraptor"?
"velociraptor" is spelled V-E-L-O-C-I-R-A-P-T-O-R. The IPA pronunciation is /vəˌlɒsɪˈɹæptɚ/.
What does "velociraptor" mean?
As a noun, "velociraptor" means: A small agile dinosaur, of the genus Velociraptor, having sickle-shaped claws. It is also thought to have had a feathered coat. Fossils have been found in Late Cretaceous deposits Mongolia and Chin...
How do you pronounce "velociraptor"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "velociraptor" is /vəˌlɒsɪˈɹæptɚ/. 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 "velociraptor"?
From New Latin Velociraptor genus name, from vēlōx (“swift”) + raptor (“thief”). The application to Deinonychus came about because Gregory S. Paul proposed that Velociraptor and Deinonychus were the same genus and this idea was taken up in the boo... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
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Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "velociraptor", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 12 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

unemployable#64,799unachievable#64,792tranquilizer#64,778terraforming#64,765

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list