aright

/əˈɹaɪt/

//əˈɹaɪt// adv

"aright" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“aright” is uncommon English (frequency #73,866 among 3,931 “A” headwords), classed as an adverb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#73,866
frequency rank, English
3,931
“A” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Rightly, correctly; in the right way or form.

Corpus desk

Index EN-aright · aright · English

aright · rank #73,866 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #73,866
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,931
  • PHOTO-FINISH apoplexy

Nearest frequency peer: apoplexy (-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.

Long-tail ranks near “aright”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “aright” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for aright
PropertyValue
Headwordaright
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdverb
IPA/əˈɹaɪt/
Letters6
Frequency rank#73,866
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “aright” in English

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).arightfalls in this rarity band:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Rare peers in the same band: “apoplexy” (#73,865), “Arius” (#73,867), “Apia” (#73,864). Among 3,931 “A” headwords, “aright” is #73,866. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

aright is uncommon English at frequency #73,866 among 3,931 “A” headwords, classed as anadverb, transcribed /əˈɹaɪt/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for aright, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English ariȝt, ariht, from Old English āriht (“aright, properly”), from earlier *an riht, on riht (“rightly”), corresponding to a- + right. The correct English form is aright, spelled A-R-I-G-H-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    Rightly, correctly; in the right way or form.
  2. 2
    To or on the right-hand side.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. it is not easie we should so often settle our minds in so regular, so reformed, and so devout a seat, where indeed it ought to be, to pray aright and effectually: otherwise our praiers are not only vaine and unprofitable, but vicious.
  2. Hear him not; call on the names of William, Justine, Clerval, Elizabeth, my father, and of the wretched Victor, and thrust your sword into his heart. I will hover near and direct the steel aright.

Etymology

From Middle English ariȝt, ariht, from Old English āriht (“aright, properly”), from earlier *an riht, on riht (“rightly”), corresponding to a- + right.

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 "aright"?
"aright" is spelled A-R-I-G-H-T. The IPA pronunciation is /əˈɹaɪt/.
What does "aright" mean?
As an adverb, "aright" means: Rightly, correctly; in the right way or form.
How do you pronounce "aright"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "aright" is /əˈɹaɪt/. 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 "aright"?
From Middle English ariȝt, ariht, from Old English āriht (“aright, properly”), from earlier *an riht, on riht (“rightly”), corresponding to a- + right. 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 "aright", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list