frontline

adj

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

"frontline" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“frontline” has 14 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #18,316. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#18,316
frequency rank, English
2,507
“F” headwords
14
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Located at a front.

Corpus desk

Index EN-frontline · frontline · English

frontline · rank #18,316 · 14 variants · 2 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #18,316
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 2 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 14 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,507
  • PHOTO-FINISH geese

Nearest frequency peer: geese (+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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “frontline”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “frontline” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

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).

frontline vs fronting
78% similar
frontline vs Fontaine
67% similar

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

Key facts for frontline
PropertyValue
Headwordfrontline
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
Letters9
Frequency rank#18,316
Misspellings tracked14
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “frontline”

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).frontlinelands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “geese” (#18,317), “genealogy” (#18,318), “fourteenth” (#18,313). Among 2,507 “F” headwords, “frontline” is #18,316. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 14 spelling variants around frontline, anadjective. Corpus frequency is #18,316 among 2,507 “F” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 14 likely wrong-spelling variants for frontline, with forms such as "ffrontline", "forntline", and "frnotline". 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 2 confusable-pair relationships, "fronting", "Fontaine", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From front + line. The correct English form is frontline, spelled F-R-O-N-T-L-I-N-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Located at a front.
  2. 2
    Most advanced or important.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. Concerns have been raised about available luggage space, with Cash remarking: "With the upcoming Christmas period there will likely be a large increase in health and safety issues and stress for frontline staff."

Etymology

From front + line.

This word in other languages

ligne de front(Français)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ffrontline
  • forntline
  • frnotline
  • fronltine
  • fronntline
  • frontilne
  • frontlien
  • frontlinne
  • frontlline
  • frontlnie
  • fronttline
  • frotnline
  • frrontline
  • rfontline

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ffrontline1forntline2frnotline2fronltine2fronntline1frontilne2frontlien2frontlinne1
Edit distance from "frontline"

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 "frontline"?
"frontline" is spelled F-R-O-N-T-L-I-N-E.
What does "frontline" mean?
As an adjective, "frontline" means: Located at a front.
What words are commonly confused with "frontline"?
"frontline" is commonly confused with "fronting", "Fontaine". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
What is the origin of the word "frontline"?
From front + line. 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 "frontline", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

genealogy#18,318Gibraltar#18,320elongated#18,298degrading#18,289

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (14 here; floor ≥5).

Davenport14 variantscolonists14 variantsByzantine14 variantsswallowing14 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list