# fame

> English word · Noun · IPA /feɪm/ · frequency rank #4,017

## Definitions
1. Something said or reported; gossip, rumour.
2. One's reputation.
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.

## Easily confused with
- **FM** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fame-vs-fm)
- **Fe** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fame-vs-fe)
- **far** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fame-vs-far)
- **fan** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fame-vs-fan)
- **fat** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fame-vs-fat)
- **fee** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fame-vs-fee)
- **fax** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fame-vs-fax)
- **foe** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fame-vs-foe)
- **fay** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fame-vs-fay)
- **FAQ** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fame-vs-faq)
- **fas** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fame-vs-fas)
- **FGM** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fame-vs-fgm)
- **FAO** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fame-vs-fao)
- **fem** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fame-vs-fem)
- **fap** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fame-vs-fap)
- **FTE** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fame-vs-fte)
- **fie** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fame-vs-fie)
- **free** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fame-vs-free)
- **five** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fame-vs-five)
- **fire** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/fame-vs-fire)

## Common misspellings (5)
`afme`, `faem`, `famme`, `ffame`, `fmae`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/fame