furtively
/ˈfɜːtɪvli/
"furtively" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“furtively” is uncommon English (frequency #72,330 among 18,613 “F” headwords), classed as an adverb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- #72,330
- frequency rank, English
- 18,613
- “F” headwords
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - In a furtive manner.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | furtively |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adverb |
| IPA | /ˈfɜːtɪvli/ |
| Letters | 9 |
| Frequency rank | #72,330 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “furtively” sits in English frequency
Rare enough to double-check
furtively is uncommon English at frequency #72,330 among 18,613 “F” headwords, classed as anadverb, transcribed /ˈfɜːtɪvli/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "In a furtive manner.".
The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for furtively, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English furtyvely; equivalent to furtive + -ly. The correct English form is furtively, spelled F-U-R-T-I-V-E-L-Y.
Definition
- 1In a furtive manner.
Etymology
From Middle English furtyvely; equivalent to furtive + -ly.
Synonyms
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); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
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Using “furtively”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is F-U-R-T-I-V-E-L-Y - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈfɜːtɪvli/ (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
Other uncommon English words near this rank
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.