avail

/əˈveɪl/

//əˈveɪl// verb

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

"avail" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“avail” has 6 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #13,096. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#13,096
frequency rank, English
3,931
“A” headwords
6
tracked misspellings
16
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To turn to the advantage of.

Corpus desk

Index EN-avail · avail · English

avail · rank #13,096 · 6 variants · 16 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #13,096
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 16 pairs
  • VAR-MID 6 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,931
  • PHOTO-FINISH authoritarian

Nearest frequency peer: authoritarian (-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 “avail”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “avail” 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).

avail vs Avi
40% similar
avail vs avid
60% similar
avail vs avis
60% similar

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

Key facts for avail
PropertyValue
Headwordavail
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/əˈveɪl/
Letters5
Frequency rank#13,096
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs16
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “avail”

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).availlands here:

#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. Same rarity band neighbours include “authoritarian” (#13,095), “Bahrain” (#13,097), “Augusta” (#13,094). Among 3,931 “A” headwords, “avail” is #13,096. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 6 spelling variants around avail (IPA /əˈveɪl/), averb. Corpus frequency is #13,096 among 3,931 “A” headwords. Wiktionary lists 6 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for avail, with forms such as "aavil", "availl", and "avali". 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 16 confusable-pair relationships, "Avi", "avid", "avis", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English availen (“to be of use”), from Old French a (“to”) + vail from valoir (“to be worth”), from Latin valere (“to be worthy, strong”). The correct English form is avail, spelled A-V-A-I-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    To turn to the advantage of.
  2. 2
    To be of service to.
  3. 3
    To promote; to assist.
  4. 4
    To be of use or advantage; to answer or serve the purpose; to have strength, force, or efficacy sufficient to accomplish the object.
  5. 5
    To provide; to make available.
  6. 6
    To use or take advantage of (an opportunity or resource).

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. I availed myself of the opportunity.
  2. It asserts that the museum has clear protocols for dealing with any form of discrimination or discontent, which it says [Tanya] Barson never availed herself of, […]

Etymology

From Middle English availen (“to be of use”), from Old French a (“to”) + vail from valoir (“to be worth”), from Latin valere (“to be worthy, strong”).

Antonyms

disavail

This word in other languages

aprovechar(Español)profiter(Français)ausnutzen(Deutsch)aproveitar(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • aavil
  • availl
  • avali
  • avial
  • avvail
  • vaail

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

aavil2availl1avali2avial2avvail1vaail2
Edit distance from "avail"

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 "avail"?
"avail" is spelled A-V-A-I-L. The IPA pronunciation is /əˈveɪl/.
What does "avail" mean?
As a verb, "avail" means: To turn to the advantage of.
What words are commonly confused with "avail"?
"avail" is commonly confused with "Avi", "avid", "avis". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "avail"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "avail" is /əˈveɪl/. 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 "avail"?
From Middle English availen (“to be of use”), from Old French a (“to”) + vail from valoir (“to be worth”), from Latin valere (“to be worthy, strong”). 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 "avail", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Anton#13,090booty#13,105abide#13,084weber#13,078

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (6 here; floor ≥5).

Benz6 variantsclaw6 variantsSammy6 variantsgrin6 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list