alveolar

Name: alveolar, English Word Data
Creator: Wiktionary
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

/alˈviː.əl.ə/

//alˈviː.əl.ə// adj

By PlainSpell · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) · analyzed September 3, 2026

The verdict

“alveolar” has 11 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #36,857. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#36,857
frequency rank, English: 3,931
“A” headwords: 11
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Relating to the alveoli (small air sacs) of the lungs.

Corpus desk

Index EN-alveolar · alveolar · English

alveolar · rank #36,857 · 11 variants · 0 confusables

FREQ-MID #36,857
LEN-LONG 8 letters
VOW-4 4 vowels
CONFUS-0 No pairs
VAR-MID 11 variants
BOOK-MID 3,931
PHOTO-FINISH alpaca

Nearest frequency peer: alpaca (-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.

alpaca

63,145
alveolar

63,144
ambivalence

63,142
amped

63,141
amphitheater

63,140
Andrade

63,139

What this shows “alveolar” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Key facts for alveolar
Property	Value
Headword	alveolar
Language	English
Part of speech	Adjective
IPA	/alˈviː.əl.ə/
Letters	8
Frequency rank	#36,857
Misspellings tracked	11
Confusable pairs	0
Source	Wiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “alveolar”

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).alveolarlands here:

#36,857

#1#100#1K#10K#100K

← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “alpaca” (#36,856), “ambivalence” (#36,859), “amped” (#36,860). Among 3,931 “A” headwords, “alveolar” is #36,857. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 11 spelling variants around alveolar (IPA /alˈviː.əl.ə/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #36,857 among 3,931 “A” headwords. Wiktionary lists 4 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for alveolar, with forms such as "alevolar", "allveolar", and "alveloar". 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. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

Etymologically, the entry records: From alveolus + -ar. The correct English form is alveolar, spelled A-L-V-E-O-L-A-R.

Definition

1
Relating to the alveoli (small air sacs) of the lungs.
2
Relating to the jaw ridge containing the tooth sockets.
3
Formed with the tongue touching or approaching the inner ridge of the gums of the upper front teeth.
4
Relating to the glands with secretory cells about a central space.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

In the case of the Wubuy alveolar versus retroflex contrast for instance, we argue that the phonetic overlap is so great that native listeners can behave as if this were an instance of a good and a 'less good' instance of a single category (CG).

Etymology

From alveolus + -ar.

This word in other languages

alveolar(Español)alvéolaire(Français)alveolar(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

alevolar
allveolar
alveloar
alveoalr
alveolarr
alveollar
alveolra
alvoelar
alvveolar
avleolar
laveolar

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

Edit distance from "alveolar"

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 "alveolar"?

"alveolar" is spelled A-L-V-E-O-L-A-R. The IPA pronunciation is /alˈviː.əl.ə/.

What does "alveolar" mean?

As an adjective, "alveolar" means: Relating to the alveoli (small air sacs) of the lungs.

What are common misspellings of "alveolar"?

Common misspellings include "alevolar", "allveolar", "alveloar", "alveoalr", "alveolarr". The correct spelling is "alveolar".

How do you pronounce "alveolar"?

The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "alveolar" is /alˈviː.əl.ə/. 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 "alveolar"?

From alveolus + -ar. 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 "alveolar", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

arsehole#36,874 wingspan#36,832 Viennese#36,815 bullseye#36,906

Similar misspelling depth

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

aggravate11 variants appraiser11 variants Yeltsin11 variants belcher11 variants