fain

/feɪn/

//feɪn// adj

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

"fain" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“fain” is uncommon English (frequency #50,503 among 2,507 “F” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#50,503
frequency rank, English
2,507
“F” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Often followed by of: glad, well-pleased.

Corpus desk

Index EN-fain · fain · English

fain · rank #50,503 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #50,503
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,507
  • PHOTO-FINISH fairtrade

Nearest frequency peer: fairtrade (+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.

Long-tail ranks near “fain”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “fain” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for fain
PropertyValue
Headwordfain
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/feɪn/
Letters4
Frequency rank#50,503
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “fain” in English

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).fainfalls in this rarity band:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “fairtrade” (#50,504), “fashionista” (#50,505), “expletive” (#50,500). Among 2,507 “F” headwords, “fain” is #50,503. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

fain is uncommon English at frequency #50,503 among 2,507 “F” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed /feɪn/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 6 senses are on record.

Zero misspellings are on record for fain in our index, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English fain (“enjoyable, pleasing; fond of; glad, pleased; good, suitable; happy, joyful”), from Old English fægen (“happy, joyful, fain”), from Proto-West Germanic *fagan (“glad”), from Proto-Germanic *faganaz (“glad”), from Proto-Indo-Europea… The correct English form is fain, spelled F-A-I-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    Often followed by of: glad, well-pleased.
  2. 2
    Often followed by of: glad, well-pleased.
  3. 3
    Often followed by of: glad, well-pleased.
  4. 4
    Chiefly followed by to, or (obsolete) for or of: eager or willing, or inclined.
  5. 5
    Favourable, well-disposed.
  6. 6
    Accustomed, apt, wont.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. VVhat is the truſt or ſtrength of fooliſh man? / They that of late vvere daring vvith their ſcoffes, / Are glad and faine by flight to ſaue themſelues.
  2. The cantie, auld folks, crackin crouſe, / The young ones ranting thro' the houſe— / My heart has been ſae fain to ſee them, / That I for joy hae barkit vvi' them.

Etymology

From Middle English fain (“enjoyable, pleasing; fond of; glad, pleased; good, suitable; happy, joyful”), from Old English fægen (“happy, joyful, fain”), from Proto-West Germanic *fagan (“glad”), from Proto-Germanic *faganaz (“glad”), from Proto-Indo-European *peḱ- (“joyful; pretty”). Cognates * Old Norse fagna (“to rejoice”), feginn (“glad, joyful”) * Gothic 𐍆𐌰𐌲𐌹𐌽𐍉𐌽 (faginōn, “to rejoice”) * Old High German fehan, gifehan (“to rejoice”) * Old Saxon fagan, fagin

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 "fain"?
"fain" is spelled F-A-I-N. The IPA pronunciation is /feɪn/.
What does "fain" mean?
As an adjective, "fain" means: Often followed by of: glad, well-pleased.
How do you pronounce "fain"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "fain" is /feɪn/. 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 "fain"?
From Middle English fain (“enjoyable, pleasing; fond of; glad, pleased; good, suitable; happy, joyful”), from Old English fægen (“happy, joyful, fain”), from Proto-West Germanic *fagan (“glad”), from Proto-Germanic *faganaz (“glad”), from Proto-In... 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 "fain", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 4 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

EULA#50,496EMEA#50,490foto#50,517Ganz#50,529

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list