embroil
/ɪmˈbɹɔɪl/
"embroil" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“embroil” is outside the top-ranked English vocabulary, used as a verb - the kind of word writers most often double-check.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 7
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - To bring (something) into a state of confusion or uproar; to complicate, to confuse, to jumble.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | embroil |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| IPA | /ɪmˈbɹɔɪl/ |
| Letters | 7 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “embroil” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for embroil is 7 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ɪmˈbɹɔɪl/. 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.
embroil has no tracked misspelling variants, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.
Etymologically, the entry records: PIE word *h₁én The verb is borrowed from French embrouiller (“to entangle”), from em- (a variant of en- (prefix meaning ‘in; into’)) + brouiller (“to confuse, mix up”) (ultimately from Vulgar Latin *brodiculāre, from *brodicāre, from Late Latin brodium (“b… The correct English form is embroil, spelled E-M-B-R-O-I-L.
Definition
- 1To bring (something) into a state of confusion or uproar; to complicate, to confuse, to jumble.
- 2To cause (someone) to be drawn into or involved in a difficult situation or state of contention.
Etymology
PIE word *h₁én The verb is borrowed from French embrouiller (“to entangle”), from em- (a variant of en- (prefix meaning ‘in; into’)) + brouiller (“to confuse, mix up”) (ultimately from Vulgar Latin *brodiculāre, from *brodicāre, from Late Latin brodium (“broth, stew; mixture”), from Frankish *broþ (“broth”), from Proto-Germanic *bruþą (“stock, broth”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰrewh₁- (“to boil; to brew”)). The noun is derived from the verb. Cognates * Italian imbrogliare * Spanish embrollar
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 “embroil”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is E-M-B-R-O-I-L - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ɪmˈbɹɔɪl/ (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.