drill

/dɹɪl/

//dɹɪl// verb

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

"drill" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“drill” has 6 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #6,132. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#6,132
frequency rank, English
3,470
“D” headwords
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To create (a hole) by removing material with a drill (tool).

Corpus desk

Index EN-drill · drill · English

drill · rank #6,132 · 6 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #6,132
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 6 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,470
  • PHOTO-FINISH disappear

Nearest frequency peer: disappear (-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 “drill”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “drill” 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).

drill vs dull
60% similar
drill vs drip
60% similar
drill vs drive
60% similar

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

Key facts for drill
PropertyValue
Headworddrill
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/dɹɪl/
Letters5
Frequency rank#6,132
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “drill”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).drilllands 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 “disappear” (#6,131), “earliest” (#6,133), “disagree” (#6,130). Among 3,470 “D” headwords, “drill” is #6,132. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 6 spelling variants around drill (IPA /dɹɪl/), averb. Corpus frequency is #6,132 among 3,470 “D” headwords. Wiktionary lists 9 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for drill, with forms such as "ddrill", "dirll", and "dril". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "dull", "drip", "drive", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle Dutch drillen (“bore, move in a circle”). The correct English form is drill, spelled D-R-I-L-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    To create (a hole) by removing material with a drill (tool).
  2. 2
    To practice, especially in (or as in) a military context.
  3. 3
    To cause to drill (practice); to train in military arts.
  4. 4
    To repeat an idea frequently in order to encourage someone to remember it.
  5. 5
    To investigate or examine something in more detail or at a different level
  6. 6
    To throw, run, hit or kick with a lot of power.
  7. 7
    To hit someone with a pitch, especially in an intentional context.
  8. 8
    To have sexual intercourse with; to penetrate.
  9. 9
    To shoot; to kill by shooting.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Drill a small hole to start the screw in the right direction.
  2. They drilled daily to learn the routine exactly.

Etymology

From Middle Dutch drillen (“bore, move in a circle”).

This word in other languages

perforar(Español)forer(Français)bohren(Deutsch)furar(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ddrill
  • dirll
  • dril
  • drlil
  • drrill
  • rdill

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ddrill1dirll2dril1drlil2drrill1rdill2
Edit distance from "drill"

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 "drill"?
"drill" is spelled D-R-I-L-L. The IPA pronunciation is /dɹɪl/.
What does "drill" mean?
As a verb, "drill" means: To create (a hole) by removing material with a drill (tool).
What words are commonly confused with "drill"?
"drill" is commonly confused with "dull", "drip", "drive". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "drill"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "drill" is /dɹɪl/. 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 "drill"?
From Middle Dutch drillen (“bore, move in a circle”). 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 "drill", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

edges#6,134diary#6,129dairy#6,123flags#6,141

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (6 here; floor ≥5).

cult6 variantsflies6 variantsColin6 variantsJulie6 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list