# rare vs rarely

> English confusable word pair

## The two words

### rare
*adjective · IPA /ɹɛ/ · frequency rank #1,772*
Very uncommon; scarce.

### rarely
*adverb · IPA /ˈɹɛːli/ · frequency rank #3,523*
Not occurring at a regular interval; seldom; not often.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/vs/rare-vs-rarely