virulence

/ˈvɪɹjələns/

//ˈvɪɹjələns// noun

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

"virulence" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“virulence” has 14 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #47,408. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#47,408
frequency rank, English
969
“V” headwords
14
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The state of being virulent.

Corpus desk

Index EN-virulence · virulence · English

virulence · rank #47,408 · 14 variants · 2 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #47,408
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 2 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 14 variants
  • BOOK-MID 969
  • PHOTO-FINISH virtuosity

Nearest frequency peer: virtuosity (-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 “virulence”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “virulence” 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).

virulence vs virulent
78% similar
virulence vs violence
78% similar

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

Key facts for virulence
PropertyValue
Headwordvirulence
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈvɪɹjələns/
Letters9
Frequency rank#47,408
Misspellings tracked14
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “virulence”

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “virtuosity” (#47,407), “Vishal” (#47,409), “villainy” (#47,406). Among 969 “V” headwords, “virulence” is #47,408. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 14 spelling variants around virulence (IPA /ˈvɪɹjələns/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #47,408 among 969 “V” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 14 likely wrong-spelling variants for virulence, with forms such as "ivrulence", "virluence", and "virrulence". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 2 confusable-pair relationships, "virulent", "violence", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle French virulence, from Late Latin virulentia. The correct English form is virulence, spelled V-I-R-U-L-E-N-C-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    The state of being virulent.
  2. 2
    The degree of how virulent a thing is.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Most strains of this virus have no virulence.
  2. Francis was enraged at the interference, and opposition made him more in earnest; but just at this time, the civil war, which had hitherto left their part of the country comparatively quiet, arose with great virulence in their immediate vicinity.

Etymology

From Middle French virulence, from Late Latin virulentia.

This word in other languages

virulencia(Español)virulence(Français)Virulenz(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ivrulence
  • virluence
  • virrulence
  • viruelnce
  • virulance
  • virulecne
  • virulencce
  • virulenec
  • virulennce
  • virullence
  • virulnece
  • viurlence
  • vriulence
  • vvirulence

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ivrulence2virluence2virrulence1viruelnce2virulance1virulecne2virulencce1virulenec2
Edit distance from "virulence"

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 "virulence"?
"virulence" is spelled V-I-R-U-L-E-N-C-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈvɪɹjələns/.
What does "virulence" mean?
As a noun, "virulence" means: The state of being virulent.
What words are commonly confused with "virulence"?
"virulence" is commonly confused with "virulent", "violence". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "virulence"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "virulence" is /ˈvɪɹjələns/. 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 "virulence"?
From Middle French virulence, from Late Latin virulentia. 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 "virulence", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

vicarious#47,405unabashed#47,392workpiece#47,427Trevelyan#47,388

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (14 here; floor ≥5).

Verstappen14 variantsacoustical14 variantsamateurish14 variantsbloodshot14 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list