Spinal cord cavitation is a common pathological process in many different diseases, and there exist many different classifications based on different diagnostic criteria, and there is still a lack of consensus in defining and categorizing the disease. Currently, spinal cord cavernous (G95.0) and spinal hydrocele (Q06.4) serve as separate ICD-10 diagnostic headings, both of which are descriptive terms for fluid-filled spinal cord cavities that are consistent with each other but contradictory to each other. Despite the fact that there is some consensus on their pathogenesis and that treatment depends on their pathogenesis, their scientific terminology fails to combine basic theory and clinical treatment in a clear and simple way. By collecting, organizing, and analyzing the available data, the authors propose a new classification, which takes spinal cord cavern (G95.0) as the only definition and discards the definition of spinal hydrocele (Q06.4). Meanwhile, spinal cord cavities were categorized into five subgroups based on their associated pathologic subtypes: hydrocephalic spinal cord cavities, hindbrain lesion-associated spinal cord cavities, non-hindbrain lesion-associated spinal cord cavities, complex spinal cord cavities, and idiopathic spinal cord cavities. This classification should be used for the diagnosis of the disease and to guide clinical treatment.