approximately
/əˈpɹɑk.sɪ.mət.li/
"approximately" is a 13-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“approximately” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #2,281 in English word frequency and used as an adverb.
- #2,281
- frequency rank, English
- 13
- letters
- 18
- tracked misspellings
- 1
- confusable pair
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Imprecise but close to in quantity or amount.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | approximately |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adverb |
| IPA | /əˈpɹɑk.sɪ.mət.li/ |
| Letters | 13 |
| Frequency rank | #2,281 |
| Misspellings tracked | 18 |
| Confusable pairs | 1 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “approximately” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for approximately is 13 letters long, classified as an adverb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /əˈpɹɑk.sɪ.mət.li/. Corpus data places it at rank #2,281 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "Imprecise but close to in quantity or amount.".
Our generated misspelling index lists 18 likely wrong-spelling variants for approximately, with forms such as "apporximately", "approixmately", and "approxiamtely". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 1 confusable-pair relationship, "approximate", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.
Etymologically, the entry records: From approximate + -ly. The correct English form is approximately, spelled A-P-P-R-O-X-I-M-A-T-E-L-Y.
Definition
- 1Imprecise but close to in quantity or amount.
Etymology
From approximate + -ly.
Synonyms
Antonyms
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: apporximately,approixmately,approxiamtely,approximaetly,approximatelly,approximatelyy,approximateyl,approximatley,approximattely,approximmately,approximtaely,approxmiately,approxximately,apprroximately,apprxoimately,aproximately,aprpoximately,paproximately
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of approximately - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.
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
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Using “approximately”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is A-P-P-R-O-X-I-M-A-T-E-L-Y - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /əˈpɹɑk.sɪ.mət.li/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “approximate” - see the side-by-side comparison. approximately vs approximate
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source
Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.