effort

/ˈɛf.ət/

//ˈɛf.ət// noun

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

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

The verdict

“effort” has 7 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #1,268. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#1,268
frequency rank, English
2,246
“E” headwords
7
tracked misspellings
5
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The work involved in performing an activity; exertion.

Corpus desk

Index EN-effort · effort · English

effort · rank #1,268 · 7 variants · 5 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #1,268
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 5 pairs
  • VAR-MID 7 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,246
  • PHOTO-FINISH compared

Nearest frequency peer: compared (-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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “effort”

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

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “effort” 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

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

effort vs export
67% similar
effort vs escort
67% similar
effort vs extort
67% similar

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

Key facts for effort
PropertyValue
Headwordeffort
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈɛf.ət/
Letters6
Frequency rank#1,268
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs5
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “effort” sits in English frequency

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).effort lands 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. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 7 spelling variants around effort (IPA /ˈɛf.ət/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #1,268 among 2,246 “E” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for effort, with forms such as "efforrt", "effortt", and "effotr". 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 5 confusable-pair relationships, "export", "escort", "extort", 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 French effort, from Old French esfort, deverbal of esforcier (“to force, exert”), from Vulgar Latin *exfortiō, from Latin ex + fortis (“strong”). Compare typologically Bulgarian усилие (usilie), Czech úsilí, Polish wysiłek, Russian уси́лие (usíl… The correct English form is effort, spelled E-F-F-O-R-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    The work involved in performing an activity; exertion.
  2. 2
    An endeavor.
  3. 3
    A force acting on a body in the direction of its motion.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. make an effort
  2. take a lot of effort

Etymology

From Middle French effort, from Old French esfort, deverbal of esforcier (“to force, exert”), from Vulgar Latin *exfortiō, from Latin ex + fortis (“strong”). Compare typologically Bulgarian усилие (usilie), Czech úsilí, Polish wysiłek, Russian уси́лие (usílije) (< Proto-Slavic *sila).

Synonyms

struggle

This word in other languages

esfuerzo(Español)effort(Français)Anstrengung(Deutsch)esforço(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • efforrt
  • effortt
  • effotr
  • effrot
  • efofrt
  • efort
  • fefort

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

efforrt1effortt1effotr2effrot2efofrt2efort1fefort2
Edit distance from "effort"

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 "effort"?
"effort" is spelled E-F-F-O-R-T. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɛf.ət/.
What does "effort" mean?
As a noun, "effort" means: The work involved in performing an activity; exertion.
What words are commonly confused with "effort"?
"effort" is commonly confused with "export", "escort", "extort". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "effort"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "effort" is /ˈɛf.ət/. 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 "effort"?
From Middle French effort, from Old French esfort, deverbal of esforcier (“to force, exert”), from Vulgar Latin *exfortiō, from Latin ex + fortis (“strong”). Compare typologically Bulgarian усилие (usilie), Czech úsilí, Polish wysiłek, Russian уси... 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 "effort", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

impact#1,273latest#1,275Africa#1,260wonder#1,258

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (7 here; floor ≥5).

beach7 variantsolder7 variantspassed7 variantscivil7 variants

What to do next

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

  • "effort" maps to 5 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "export". View pair
  • 7 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
  • Usage frequency rank #1,268 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more English words in the "E" letter cohort. E–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