eagerly

/ˈiɡɚli/

//ˈiɡɚli// adv

"eagerly" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“eagerly” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #15,153 in English word frequency and used as an adverb.

#15,153
frequency rank, English
7
letters
10
tracked misspellings
5
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - In an eager manner.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

eagerly vs early
71% similar
eagerly vs eatery
71% similar
eagerly vs elderly
71% similar

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

Key facts for eagerly
PropertyValue
Headwordeagerly
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdverb
IPA/ˈiɡɚli/
Letters7
Frequency rank#15,153
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs5
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “eagerly” 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). eagerly lands here:

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

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

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for eagerly is 7 letters long, classified as an adverb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈiɡɚli/. Corpus data places it at rank #15,153 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "In an eager manner.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for eagerly, with forms such as "aegerly", "eaegrly", and "eagelry". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 5 confusable-pair relationships, "early", "eatery", "elderly", 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 English egerly; equivalent to eager + -ly. The correct English form is eagerly, spelled E-A-G-E-R-L-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    In an eager manner.

Etymology

From Middle English egerly; equivalent to eager + -ly.

Synonyms

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: aegerly,eaegrly,eagelry,eagerlly,eagerlyy,eagerrly,eageryl,eaggerly,eagrely,egaerly

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of eagerly - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

aegerly2eaegrly2eagelry2eagerlly1eagerlyy1eagerrly1eageryl2eaggerly1
Edit distance from "eagerly"

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 "eagerly"?
"eagerly" is spelled E-A-G-E-R-L-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈiɡɚli/.
What does "eagerly" mean?
As an adverb, "eagerly" means: In an eager manner.
What words are commonly confused with "eagerly"?
"eagerly" is commonly confused with "early", "eatery", "elderly". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "eagerly"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "eagerly" is /ˈiɡɚli/. 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 "eagerly"?
From Middle English egerly; equivalent to eager + -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.

Using “eagerly”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is E-A-G-E-R-L-Y - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈiɡɚli/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “early” - see the side-by-side comparison. eagerly vs early
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list