emery

/ˈɛməɹi/

//ˈɛməɹi// noun

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

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

The verdict

“emery” has 7 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #19,583. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#19,583
frequency rank, English
2,246
“E” headwords
7
tracked misspellings
19
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An impure type of corundum, often used for sanding or polishing.

Corpus desk

Index EN-emery · emery · English

emery · rank #19,583 · 7 variants · 19 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #19,583
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 19 pairs
  • VAR-MID 7 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,246
  • PHOTO-FINISH ecommerce

Nearest frequency peer: ecommerce (-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 “emery”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “emery” 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).

emery vs ever
60% similar
emery vs Emmy
40% similar
emery vs emir
60% similar

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

Key facts for emery
PropertyValue
Headwordemery
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈɛməɹi/
Letters5
Frequency rank#19,583
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs19
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “emery”

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).emerylands 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 “ecommerce” (#19,582), “enrich” (#19,584), “downed” (#19,581). Among 2,246 “E” headwords, “emery” is #19,583. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 7 spelling variants around emery (IPA /ˈɛməɹi/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #19,583 among 2,246 “E” headwords. Dominant gloss: "An impure type of corundum, often used for sanding or polishing.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for emery, with forms such as "eemry", "emerry", and "emeryy". 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 19 confusable-pair relationships, "ever", "Emmy", "emir", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From French émeri, from Old French esmeril, from Italian smeriglio. The correct English form is emery, spelled E-M-E-R-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    An impure type of corundum, often used for sanding or polishing.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. It took me from nine to ten days to grind and polish it ready for parabolising and silvering. I did this by hand labour with the aid of emery, but without a lathe. I finally used rouge instead of emery in grinding down the glass, until I could see my face in the mirror quite plain.

Etymology

From French émeri, from Old French esmeril, from Italian smeriglio.

This word in other languages

esmeril(Español)émeri(Français)Schmirgel(Deutsch)esmeril(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • eemry
  • emerry
  • emeryy
  • emeyr
  • emmery
  • emrey
  • meery

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of emery - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

eemry2emerry1emeryy1emeyr2emmery1emrey2meery2
Edit distance from "emery"

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 "emery"?
"emery" is spelled E-M-E-R-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɛməɹi/.
What does "emery" mean?
As a noun, "emery" means: An impure type of corundum, often used for sanding or polishing.
What words are commonly confused with "emery"?
"emery" is commonly confused with "ever", "Emmy", "emir". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "emery"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "emery" is /ˈɛməɹi/. 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 "emery"?
From French émeri, from Old French esmeril, from Italian smeriglio. 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 "emery", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

dives#19,580Debra#19,572FLOPS#19,600Busch#19,547

Similar misspelling depth

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

incur7 variantsleafy7 variantsauntie7 variantsviper7 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list