comely

/ˈkʌmli/

//ˈkʌmli// adj

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

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

The verdict

“comely” is uncommon English (frequency #62,060 among 5,599 “C” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#62,060
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Attractive; visually pleasing; good-looking.

Corpus desk

Index EN-comely · comely · English

comely · rank #62,060 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #62,060
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH cockerel

Nearest frequency peer: cockerel (-2 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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “comely”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “comely” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for comely
PropertyValue
Headwordcomely
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈkʌmli/
Letters6
Frequency rank#62,060
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “comely” 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). comely lands here:

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

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

Rare enough to double-check

comely is uncommon English at frequency #62,060 among 5,599 “C” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed /ˈkʌmli/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.

comely has no tracked misspelling variants, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

Etymologically, the entry records: The adjective is derived from Middle English comly, comli, cumly, cumlich (“of a person: beautiful, handsome, etc.; of noble birth, bearing, or character; of behaviour: appropriate, becoming; of an event: convenient; favourable; of a thing: beautiful, wonde… The correct English form is comely, spelled C-O-M-E-L-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    Attractive; visually pleasing; good-looking.
  2. 2
    Attractive; visually pleasing; good-looking.
  3. 3
    Attractive; visually pleasing; good-looking.
  4. 4
    Pleasing to the feelings or senses; agreeable, nice, pleasant.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. a comely woman
  2. Not once perceive their foul disfigurement, / But boaſt themſelves more comely than before

Etymology

The adjective is derived from Middle English comly, comli, cumly, cumlich (“of a person: beautiful, handsome, etc.; of noble birth, bearing, or character; of behaviour: appropriate, becoming; of an event: convenient; favourable; of a thing: beautiful, wonderful; fitting, proper”), from Old English cymlīċ, cȳmlīċ (“beautiful, comely; splendid; convenient”), from cȳme (“beautiful, comely; splendid; exquisite, fine”) + -līċ (suffix meaning ‘like; relating to’ forming adjectives). Cȳme is derived from Proto-Germanic *kūmiz (“delicate; feeble”), from *kūmalīkaz (“dear; pitiful”), probably related to *kūmaz, *kūmijaz (“pitiful; frail, weak”), from Proto-Indo-European *gewH- (“to call, name; to call on, invoke; to cry, cry out”). The word was influenced by come (verb). The verb is derived from the adjective. Cognates Middle Dutch komelick, komlick Middle High German gomelīh, komelīh

This word in other languages

lindo(Español)avenant(Français)ansehnlich(Deutsch)atraente(Português)

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.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of September 3, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "comely"?
"comely" is spelled C-O-M-E-L-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈkʌmli/.
What does "comely" mean?
As an adjective, "comely" means: Attractive; visually pleasing; good-looking.
How do you pronounce "comely"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "comely" is /ˈkʌmli/. 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 "comely"?
The adjective is derived from Middle English comly, comli, cumly, cumlich (“of a person: beautiful, handsome, etc.; of noble birth, bearing, or character; of behaviour: appropriate, becoming; of an event: convenient; favourable; of a thing: beauti... 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 "comely", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Clorox#62,054coolie#62,066choate#62,047Chatto#62,044

What to do next

You've looked up "comely". Here's where to go from here.

  • Usage frequency rank #62,060 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
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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