fiery

/ˈfaɪəɹi/

//ˈfaɪəɹi// adj

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

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

The verdict

“fiery” has 7 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #13,515. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#13,515
frequency rank, English
2,507
“F” headwords
7
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Of or relating to fire.

Corpus desk

Index EN-fiery · fiery · English

fiery · rank #13,515 · 7 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #13,515
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 7 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,507
  • PHOTO-FINISH fasting

Nearest frequency peer: fasting (-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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “fiery”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “fiery” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

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).

fiery vs fry
60% similar
fiery vs fir
60% similar
fiery vs fire
60% similar

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

Key facts for fiery
PropertyValue
Headwordfiery
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈfaɪəɹi/
Letters5
Frequency rank#13,515
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “fiery” sits in English frequency

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).fierylands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “fasting” (#13,514), “flipping” (#13,517), “flux” (#13,518). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 7 spelling variants around fiery (IPA /ˈfaɪəɹi/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #13,515 among 2,507 “F” headwords. Wiktionary lists 8 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for fiery, with forms such as "feiry", "ffiery", and "fierry". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "fry", "fir", "fire", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English fyry, from fyr (“fire”), equivalent to fire + -y. Compare typologically Mongolian галт (galt) (< гал (gal)); Russian пла́менный (plámennyj) (akin to пла́мя (plámja)); Russian вспы́льчивый (vspýlʹčivyj), запа́льчивый (zapálʹčivyj). The correct English form is fiery, spelled F-I-E-R-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    Of or relating to fire.
  2. 2
    Burning or glowing.
  3. 3
    Inflammable or easily ignited.
  4. 4
    Having the colour of fire.
  5. 5
    Hot or inflamed.
  6. 6
    Tempestuous or emotionally volatile; sulfurous.
  7. 7
    Spirited or filled with emotion.
  8. 8
    Having the capillaries contracted due to stress at time of slaughter, causing blood to not drain properly.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Blast after blast, fiery outbreak after fiery outbreak, like a flaming barrage from within,[…]most of Edison's grounds soon became an inferno. As though on an incendiary rampage, the fires systematically devoured the contents of Edison's headquarters and facilities.
  2. The desert storm was riding in its strength; the travellers lay beneath the mastery of the fell simoom.[…]Drifts of yellow vapour, fiery, parching, stinging, filled the air.

Etymology

From Middle English fyry, from fyr (“fire”), equivalent to fire + -y. Compare typologically Mongolian галт (galt) (< гал (gal)); Russian пла́менный (plámennyj) (akin to пла́мя (plámja)); Russian вспы́льчивый (vspýlʹčivyj), запа́льчивый (zapálʹčivyj).

This word in other languages

pírico(Español)ardent(Français)feurig(Deutsch)ardente(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • feiry
  • ffiery
  • fierry
  • fieryy
  • fieyr
  • firey
  • ifery

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

feiry2ffiery1fierry1fieryy1fieyr2firey2ifery2
Edit distance from "fiery"

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 "fiery"?
"fiery" is spelled F-I-E-R-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈfaɪəɹi/.
What does "fiery" mean?
As an adjective, "fiery" means: Of or relating to fire.
What words are commonly confused with "fiery"?
"fiery" is commonly confused with "fry", "fir", "fire". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "fiery"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "fiery" is /ˈfaɪəɹi/. 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 "fiery"?
From Middle English fyry, from fyr (“fire”), equivalent to fire + -y. Compare typologically Mongolian галт (galt) (< гал (gal)); Russian пла́менный (plámennyj) (akin to пла́мя (plámja)); Russian вспы́льчивый (vspýlʹčivyj), запа́льчивый (zapálʹčivyj). 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 "fiery", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Edith#13,508gimme#13,522goofy#13,523dwell#13,505

Similar misspelling depth

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

fueled7 variantshassle7 variantsDover7 variantsIrwin7 variants

What to do next

You've looked up "fiery". Here's where to go from here.

  • "fiery" maps to 20 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "fry". View pair
  • 7 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
  • Usage frequency rank #13,515 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more English words in the "F" letter cohort. F–Z browse
  • PlainSpell rotates a curated Word of the Day from the English corpus, a passive way to discover vocabulary. Word of the Day

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

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