father-in-law
/ˈfɑːðəɹɪnˌlɔː/
"father-in-law" is a 11-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“father-in-law” is outside the top-ranked English vocabulary, used as a noun - the kind of word writers most often double-check.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 13
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - One's spouse's father.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | father-in-law |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈfɑːðəɹɪnˌlɔː/ |
| Letters | 13 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “father-in-law” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for father-in-law is 13 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈfɑːðəɹɪnˌlɔː/. 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.
Zero misspellings are on record for father-in-law in our index, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English fader in lawe, fadyr-in-lay, fader yn lawe, equivalent to father + -in-law. The correct English form is father-in-law, spelled F-A-T-H-E-R---I-N---L-A-W.
Definition
- 1One's spouse's father.
- 2A stepfather.
Etymology
From Middle English fader in lawe, fadyr-in-lay, fader yn lawe, equivalent to father + -in-law.
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 “father-in-law”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is F-A-T-H-E-R---I-N---L-A-W - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈfɑːðəɹɪnˌlɔː/ (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.