cunningly

adv

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

"cunningly" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“cunningly” is uncommon English (frequency #62,813 among 5,599 “C” headwords), classed as an adverb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#62,813
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - With cunning, cleverly.

Corpus desk

Index EN-cunningly · cunningly · English

cunningly · rank #62,813 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #62,813
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH CSB

Nearest frequency peer: CSB (-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 “cunningly”

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

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “cunningly” 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 cunningly
PropertyValue
Headwordcunningly
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdverb
Letters9
Frequency rank#62,813
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “cunningly” 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).cunninglylands 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 “CSB” (#62,811), “curried” (#62,815), “crystallize” (#62,810). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

cunningly is uncommon English at frequency #62,813 among 5,599 “C” headwords, classed as anadverb. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "With cunning, cleverly.".

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for cunningly, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

Etymologically, the entry records: From cunning + -ly. The correct English form is cunningly, spelled C-U-N-N-I-N-G-L-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    With cunning, cleverly.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. She was cunningly dressed in a black, sheer gown with gold ornaments showing her figure to perfection.

Etymology

From cunning + -ly.

This word in other languages

arteramente(Español)astucieusement(Français)schlau(Deutsch)

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 "cunningly"?
"cunningly" is spelled C-U-N-N-I-N-G-L-Y.
What does "cunningly" mean?
As an adverb, "cunningly" means: With cunning, cleverly.
What is the origin of the word "cunningly"?
From cunning + -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 "cunningly", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

deaconess#62,824collegial#62,785Dravidian#62,852enchilada#62,871

What to do next

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

  • Usage frequency rank #62,813 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more English words in the "C" letter cohort. C–Z browse
  • PlainSpell rotates a curated Word of the Day from the English corpus, a passive way to discover vocabulary. Word of the Day

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

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