bluntly

/ˈblʌntli/

//ˈblʌntli// adv

"bluntly" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“bluntly” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #26,345 in English word frequency and used as an adverb.

#26,345
frequency rank, English
7
letters
12
tracked misspellings
4
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - In a blunt manner; without delicacy, or the usual forms of civility.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

bluntly vs bounty
71% similar
bluntly vs blunt
71% similar
bluntly vs blindly
71% similar

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

Key facts for bluntly
PropertyValue
Headwordbluntly
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdverb
IPA/ˈblʌntli/
Letters7
Frequency rank#26,345
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs4
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “bluntly” sits in English frequency

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for bluntly is 7 letters long, classified as an adverb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈblʌntli/. Corpus data places it at rank #26,345 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "In a blunt manner; without delicacy, or the usual forms of civility.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for bluntly, with forms such as "bbluntly", "blluntly", and "blnutly". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 4 confusable-pair relationships, "bounty", "blunt", "blindly", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From blunt + -ly. The correct English form is bluntly, spelled B-L-U-N-T-L-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    In a blunt manner; without delicacy, or the usual forms of civility.

Etymology

From blunt + -ly.

Synonyms

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: bbluntly,blluntly,blnutly,blunlty,blunntly,bluntlly,bluntlyy,blunttly,bluntyl,blutnly,bulntly,lbuntly

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of bluntly - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

bbluntly1blluntly1blnutly2blunlty2blunntly1bluntlly1bluntlyy1blunttly1
Edit distance from "bluntly"

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 "bluntly"?
"bluntly" is spelled B-L-U-N-T-L-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈblʌntli/.
What does "bluntly" mean?
As an adverb, "bluntly" means: In a blunt manner; without delicacy, or the usual forms of civility.
What words are commonly confused with "bluntly"?
"bluntly" is commonly confused with "bounty", "blunt", "blindly". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "bluntly"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "bluntly" is /ˈblʌntli/. 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 "bluntly"?
From blunt + -ly. 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.

Using “bluntly”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is B-L-U-N-T-L-Y - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈblʌntli/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “bounty” - see the side-by-side comparison. bluntly vs bounty
  • 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list