boldly

/ˈbəʊldli/

//ˈbəʊldli// adv

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

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

The verdict

“boldly” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #20,050. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#20,050
frequency rank, English
4,121
“B” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
11
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - In a bold manner; with confidence.

Corpus desk

Index EN-boldly · boldly · English

boldly · rank #20,050 · 10 variants · 11 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #20,050
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 11 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,121
  • PHOTO-FINISH boasting

Nearest frequency peer: boasting (-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 “boldly”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “boldly” 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).

boldly vs bully
67% similar
boldly vs broadly
71% similar
boldly vs body
67% similar

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

Key facts for boldly
PropertyValue
Headwordboldly
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdverb
IPA/ˈbəʊldli/
Letters6
Frequency rank#20,050
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs11
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “boldly”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).boldlylands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “boasting” (#20,049), “boardwalk” (#20,048), “boomer” (#20,052). Among 4,121 “B” headwords, “boldly” is #20,050. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around boldly (IPA /ˈbəʊldli/), anadverb. Corpus frequency is #20,050 among 4,121 “B” headwords. Dominant gloss: "In a bold manner; with confidence.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for boldly, with forms such as "bboldly", "blodly", and "bodlly". 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 11 confusable-pair relationships, "bully", "broadly", "body", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English boldely, boldeliche, baldeliche, from Old English bealdlīċe (“boldly, earnestly”), equivalent to bold + -ly. The correct English form is boldly, spelled B-O-L-D-L-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    In a bold manner; with confidence.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. to boldly go where no man has gone before
  2. Postcards that are billboardlike communications with an immediate message stated boldly and creatively.

Etymology

From Middle English boldely, boldeliche, baldeliche, from Old English bealdlīċe (“boldly, earnestly”), equivalent to bold + -ly.

This word in other languages

audazmente(Español)hardiment(Français)kühn(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • bboldly
  • blodly
  • bodlly
  • bolddly
  • boldlly
  • boldlyy
  • boldyl
  • bolldly
  • bolldy
  • obldly

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

bboldly1blodly2bodlly2bolddly1boldlly1boldlyy1boldyl2bolldly1
Edit distance from "boldly"

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 "boldly"?
"boldly" is spelled B-O-L-D-L-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈbəʊldli/.
What does "boldly" mean?
As an adverb, "boldly" means: In a bold manner; with confidence.
What words are commonly confused with "boldly"?
"boldly" is commonly confused with "bully", "broadly", "body". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "boldly"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "boldly" is /ˈbəʊldli/. 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 "boldly"?
From Middle English boldely, boldeliche, baldeliche, from Old English bealdlīċe (“boldly, earnestly”), equivalent to bold + -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.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "boldly", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

boomer#20,052Blaine#20,047booths#20,053Chiang#20,060

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (10 here; floor ≥5).

assorted10 variantsanalogue10 variantsconduit10 variantsadamant10 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list