# brotherly

> English word · Adjective · IPA /ˈbɹʌð.ə.li/ · frequency rank #31,886

## Definitions
1. Of or characteristic of brothers.

## Etymology
From Middle English brotherly, from Old English brōþorlīċ, from Proto-Germanic *brōþurlīkaz, equivalent to brother + -ly (adjectival suffix). Cognate with Dutch broederlijk (“brotherly”), German brüderlich (“brotherly”), Swedish broderlig (“brotherly”). Piecewise doublet of friarly.

## Easily confused with
- **brothers** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/brotherly-vs-brothers)
- **brother** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/brother-vs-brotherly)
- **brothel** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/brothel-vs-brotherly)

## Common misspellings (15)
`bbrotherly`, `bortherly`, `brohterly`, `brotehrly`, `brothelry`, `brotherlly`, `brotherlyy`, `brotherrly`, `brotheryl`, `brothherly`, `brothrely`, `brottherly`, `brrotherly`, `brtoherly`, `rbotherly`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/brotherly