fame

/feɪm/

//feɪm// noun

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

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

The verdict

“fame” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #4,017 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#4,017
frequency rank, English
4
letters
5
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Something said or reported; gossip, rumour.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

fame vs FM
0% similar
fame vs Fe
25% similar
fame vs far
50% similar

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

Key facts for fame
PropertyValue
Headwordfame
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/feɪm/
Letters4
Frequency rank#4,017
Misspellings tracked5
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “fame” sits in English frequency

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for fame is 4 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /feɪm/. Corpus data places it at rank #4,017 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 5 likely wrong-spelling variants for fame, with forms such as "afme", "faem", and "famme". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "FM", "Fe", "far", 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 English fame, from Old French fame (“celebrity, renown”), itself borrowed from Latin fāma (“talk, rumor, report, reputation”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰéh₂-meh₂, from *bʰeh₂- (“to speak, say, tell”). Cognate with Ancient Greek φήμη (phḗmē, “t… The correct English form is fame, spelled F-A-M-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Something said or reported; gossip, rumour.
  2. 2
    One's reputation.
  3. 3
    The state of being famous or well-known and spoken of, especially for something positive.

Etymology

From Middle English fame, from Old French fame (“celebrity, renown”), itself borrowed from Latin fāma (“talk, rumor, report, reputation”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰéh₂-meh₂, from *bʰeh₂- (“to speak, say, tell”). Cognate with Ancient Greek φήμη (phḗmē, “talk”). Related also to Latin for (“speak, say”, verb), Old English bōian (“to boast”), Old English bēn (“prayer, request”), Old English bannan (“to summon, command, proclaim”). More at ban. Displaced native Old English hlīsa.

This word in other languages

fama(Español)gloire(Français)Ruhm(Deutsch)fama(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: afme,faem,famme,ffame,fmae

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

afme2faem2famme1ffame1fmae2
Edit distance from "fame"

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 "fame"?
"fame" is spelled F-A-M-E. The IPA pronunciation is /feɪm/.
What does "fame" mean?
As a noun, "fame" means: Something said or reported; gossip, rumour.
What words are commonly confused with "fame"?
"fame" is commonly confused with "FM", "Fe", "far". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "fame"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "fame" is /feɪm/. 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 "fame"?
From Middle English fame, from Old French fame (“celebrity, renown”), itself borrowed from Latin fāma (“talk, rumor, report, reputation”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰéh₂-meh₂, from *bʰeh₂- (“to speak, say, tell”). Cognate with Ancient Greek φήμη ... 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.

Using “fame”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is F-A-M-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /feɪm/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “FM” - see the side-by-side comparison. fame vs FM
  • 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list