alarmingly

/əˈlɑːm.ɪŋ.li/

//əˈlɑːm.ɪŋ.li// adv

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

"alarmingly" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“alarmingly” has 16 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #43,500. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#43,500
frequency rank, English
3,931
“A” headwords
16
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - In an alarming way, frighteningly.

Corpus desk

Index EN-alarmingly · alarmingly · English

alarmingly · rank #43,500 · 16 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #43,500
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 16 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,931
  • PHOTO-FINISH airsoft

Nearest frequency peer: airsoft (-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 “alarmingly”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “alarmingly” 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).

alarmingly vs alarming
80% similar

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

Key facts for alarmingly
PropertyValue
Headwordalarmingly
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdverb
IPA/əˈlɑːm.ɪŋ.li/
Letters10
Frequency rank#43,500
Misspellings tracked16
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “alarmingly”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).alarminglylands 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 “airsoft” (#43,499), “Algonquin” (#43,501), “airbrush” (#43,498). Among 3,931 “A” headwords, “alarmingly” is #43,500. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 16 spelling variants around alarmingly (IPA /əˈlɑːm.ɪŋ.li/), anadverb. Corpus frequency is #43,500 among 3,931 “A” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 16 likely wrong-spelling variants for alarmingly, with forms such as "aalrmingly", "alamringly", and "alarimngly". 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 1 confusable-pair relationship, "alarming", a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From alarming + -ly. The correct English form is alarmingly, spelled A-L-A-R-M-I-N-G-L-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    In an alarming way, frighteningly.
  2. 2
    Causing fear or concern.
  3. 3
    To an extent that causes alarm.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. He sneezed alarmingly.
  2. Even a small camber one way caused the whole outfit to list alarmingly.

Etymology

From alarming + -ly.

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • aalrmingly
  • alamringly
  • alarimngly
  • alarmignly
  • alarminggly
  • alarminglly
  • alarminglyy
  • alarmingyl
  • alarminlgy
  • alarminngly
  • alarmmingly
  • alarmnigly
  • alarrmingly
  • allarmingly
  • alramingly
  • laarmingly

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

aalrmingly2alamringly2alarimngly2alarmignly2alarminggly1alarminglly1alarminglyy1alarmingyl2
Edit distance from "alarmingly"

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 "alarmingly"?
"alarmingly" is spelled A-L-A-R-M-I-N-G-L-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /əˈlɑːm.ɪŋ.li/.
What does "alarmingly" mean?
As an adverb, "alarmingly" means: In an alarming way, frighteningly.
What words are commonly confused with "alarmingly"?
"alarmingly" is commonly confused with "alarming". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "alarmingly"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "alarmingly" is /əˈlɑːm.ɪŋ.li/. 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 "alarmingly"?
From alarming + -ly. 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 "alarmingly", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 10 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

apocryphal#43,508beekeeping#43,522Bennington#43,524wirelessly#43,472

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (16 here; floor ≥5).

bisexuality16 variantsstrangeness16 variantsenthralling16 variantsequivalency16 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list