artery

/ˈɑː.tə.ɹi/

//ˈɑː.tə.ɹi// noun

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

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

The verdict

“artery” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #12,006. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#12,006
frequency rank, English
3,931
“A” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
7
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Any of the muscular- and elastic-walled blood vessels forming part of the circulation system by which blood is conveyed away from the heart regardless of its oxygenation status; see pulmonary artery.

Corpus desk

Index EN-artery · artery · English

artery · rank #12,006 · 9 variants · 7 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #12,006
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 7 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,931
  • PHOTO-FINISH bamboo

Nearest frequency peer: bamboo (+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 “artery”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “artery” 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).

artery vs arty
67% similar
artery vs Avery
50% similar
artery vs artsy
67% similar

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

Key facts for artery
PropertyValue
Headwordartery
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈɑː.tə.ɹi/
Letters6
Frequency rank#12,006
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs7
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “artery”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).arterylands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “bamboo” (#12,007), “anthropology” (#12,004), “basil” (#12,008). Among 3,931 “A” headwords, “artery” is #12,006. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around artery (IPA /ˈɑː.tə.ɹi/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #12,006 among 3,931 “A” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for artery, with forms such as "aretry", "arrtery", and "arterry". 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 7 confusable-pair relationships, "arty", "Avery", "artsy", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: Late Middle English arterie, borrowing from Old French artaire and Latin artēria (“a windpipe; an artery”), from Ancient Greek ᾰ̓ρτηρῐ́ᾱ (ărtērĭ́ā, “windpipe; artery”). The correct English form is artery, spelled A-R-T-E-R-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    Any of the muscular- and elastic-walled blood vessels forming part of the circulation system by which blood is conveyed away from the heart regardless of its oxygenation status; see pulmonary artery.
  2. 2
    A major transit corridor in a system of roads, rivers, or railway lines.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. As we age, the major arteries of our bodies frequently become thickened with plaque, a fatty material with an oatmeal-like consistency that builds up along the inner lining of blood vessels. The reason plaque forms isn’t entirely known, but it seems to be related to high levels of cholesterol inducing an inflammatory response, which can also attract and t…
  2. But the importance of the railways as main arteries of the national economy remains undimmed, just as their fascination for the railway enthusiast is surely undiminished.

Etymology

Late Middle English arterie, borrowing from Old French artaire and Latin artēria (“a windpipe; an artery”), from Ancient Greek ᾰ̓ρτηρῐ́ᾱ (ărtērĭ́ā, “windpipe; artery”).

Synonyms

arteriaartery

This word in other languages

arteria(Español)artère(Français)Arterie(Deutsch)artéria(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • aretry
  • arrtery
  • arterry
  • arteryy
  • arteyr
  • artrey
  • arttery
  • atrery
  • ratery

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of artery - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

aretry2arrtery1arterry1arteryy1arteyr2artrey2arttery1atrery2
Edit distance from "artery"

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 "artery"?
"artery" is spelled A-R-T-E-R-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɑː.tə.ɹi/.
What does "artery" mean?
As a noun, "artery" means: Any of the muscular- and elastic-walled blood vessels forming part of the circulation system by which blood is conveyed away from the heart regardless of its oxygenation status; see pulmonary artery.
What words are commonly confused with "artery"?
"artery" is commonly confused with "arty", "Avery", "artsy". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "artery"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "artery" is /ˈɑː.tə.ɹi/. 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 "artery"?
Late Middle English arterie, borrowing from Old French artaire and Latin artēria (“a windpipe; an artery”), from Ancient Greek ᾰ̓ρτηρῐ́ᾱ (ărtērĭ́ā, “windpipe; artery”). 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 "artery", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

bamboo#12,007Bolton#12,010Bombay#12,011Warsaw#11,996

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (9 here; floor ≥5).

Brennan9 variantsbuzzing9 variantscaliber9 variantssuppress9 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list