venomous

/ˈvɛnəməs/

//ˈvɛnəməs// adj

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

"venomous" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“venomous” has 11 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #26,300. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#26,300
frequency rank, English
969
“V” headwords
11
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Of an animal (specifically a snake) or parts of its body: producing venom (“a toxin intended for defensive or offensive use”) which is usually injected into an enemy or prey by biting or stinging; ...

Corpus desk

Index EN-venomous · venomous · English

venomous · rank #26,300 · 11 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #26,300
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-MID 11 variants
  • BOOK-MID 969
  • PHOTO-FINISH viceroy

Nearest frequency peer: viceroy (+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 “venomous”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “venomous” 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).

venomous vs venous
75% similar

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

Key facts for venomous
PropertyValue
Headwordvenomous
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈvɛnəməs/
Letters8
Frequency rank#26,300
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “venomous”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).venomouslands here:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “viceroy” (#26,301), “veal” (#26,298), “videotape” (#26,302). Among 969 “V” headwords, “venomous” is #26,300. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 11 spelling variants around venomous (IPA /ˈvɛnəməs/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #26,300 among 969 “V” headwords. Wiktionary lists 7 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for venomous, with forms such as "evnomous", "venmoous", and "vennomous". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 1 confusable-pair relationship, "venous", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English venymous, from Old French venimos, composed of venim (“venom”) + -os (adjective-forming suffix). Synchronically analysable as venom + -ous. Compare Modern French venimeux. Piecewise doublet of venenous. The correct English form is venomous, spelled V-E-N-O-M-O-U-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    Of an animal (specifically a snake) or parts of its body: producing venom (“a toxin intended for defensive or offensive use”) which is usually injected into an enemy or prey by biting or stinging; hence, of a bite or sting: injecting venom.
  2. 2
    Of or pertaining to venom.
  3. 3
    Consisting of, or containing or full of, venom or some other poison; hence, harmful to health due to this.
  4. 4
    Posing a threat; dangerous, threatening.
  5. 5
    Hateful; malignant; spiteful.
  6. 6
    Of a weapon such as an arrow or dart: dosed with venom or poison; envenomed, poisoned.
  7. 7
    Harmful, hurtful, injurious; specifically, morally or spiritually harmful; evil, noxious, pernicious.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Do venomous spiders have glands?
  2. For that beaſtes teeth, vvhich vvounded you tofore, / Are ſo exceeding venemous and keene, / Made all of ruſty yron, ranckling ſore, / That vvhen they bite, it booteth not to vveene / VVith ſalue, or antidote, or other mene / It euer to amend: […]

Etymology

From Middle English venymous, from Old French venimos, composed of venim (“venom”) + -os (adjective-forming suffix). Synchronically analysable as venom + -ous. Compare Modern French venimeux. Piecewise doublet of venenous.

This word in other languages

venenoso(Español)vénéneux(Français)giftig(Deutsch)venenoso(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • evnomous
  • venmoous
  • vennomous
  • venommous
  • venomosu
  • venomouss
  • venomuos
  • venoomus
  • veonmous
  • vneomous
  • vvenomous

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of venomous - 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.

evnomous2venmoous2vennomous1venommous1venomosu2venomouss1venomuos2venoomus2
Edit distance from "venomous"

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 "venomous"?
"venomous" is spelled V-E-N-O-M-O-U-S. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈvɛnəməs/.
What does "venomous" mean?
As an adjective, "venomous" means: Of an animal (specifically a snake) or parts of its body: producing venom (“a toxin intended for defensive or offensive use”) which is usually injected into an enemy or prey by biting or stinging; ...
What words are commonly confused with "venomous"?
"venomous" is commonly confused with "venous". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "venomous"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "venomous" is /ˈvɛnəməs/. 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 "venomous"?
From Middle English venymous, from Old French venimos, composed of venim (“venom”) + -os (adjective-forming suffix). Synchronically analysable as venom + -ous. Compare Modern French venimeux. Piecewise doublet of venenous. 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 "venomous", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

tiresome#26,283taxonomy#26,278airliner#26,323allegory#26,327

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (11 here; floor ≥5).

whiting11 variantsswaying11 variantsstroller11 variantsAshland11 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list