effrontery
/ɪˈfɹʌntəɹi/
"effrontery" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“effrontery” is outside the top-ranked English vocabulary, used as a noun - the kind of word writers most often double-check.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 10
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Insolent and shameless audacity.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | effrontery |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ɪˈfɹʌntəɹi/ |
| Letters | 10 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “effrontery” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for effrontery is 10 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ɪˈfɹʌntəɹi/. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
effrontery has no tracked misspelling variants, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.
Etymologically, the entry records: From late 17th century French effronterie, from effronté (“shameless, insolent”), from Old French esfronté, from Vulgar Latin *exfrontātus. Compare Latin effrōns (“barefaced”), from the prefix ex- (“from”) + frōns (“forehead”) (English: front). By surface a… The correct English form is effrontery, spelled E-F-F-R-O-N-T-E-R-Y.
Definition
- 1Insolent and shameless audacity.
- 2An act of insolent and shameless audacity.
Etymology
From late 17th century French effronterie, from effronté (“shameless, insolent”), from Old French esfronté, from Vulgar Latin *exfrontātus. Compare Latin effrōns (“barefaced”), from the prefix ex- (“from”) + frōns (“forehead”) (English: front). By surface analysis, ef- + front + -er + -y.
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Using “effrontery”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is E-F-F-R-O-N-T-E-R-Y - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ɪˈfɹʌntəɹi/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- 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.