galaxy

/ˈɡæl.ək.si/

//ˈɡæl.ək.si// noun

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

"galaxy" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“galaxy” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #4,450. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#4,450
frequency rank, English
2,313
“G” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
3
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The Milky Way; the apparent band of concentrated stars which appears in the night sky over earth.

Corpus desk

Index EN-galaxy · galaxy · English

galaxy · rank #4,450 · 9 variants · 3 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #4,450
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 3 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,313
  • PHOTO-FINISH filter

Nearest frequency peer: filter (-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 “galaxy”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “galaxy” 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).

galaxy vs galley
67% similar
galaxy vs Galway
50% similar
galaxy vs gala
67% similar

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

Key facts for galaxy
PropertyValue
Headwordgalaxy
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈɡæl.ək.si/
Letters6
Frequency rank#4,450
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs3
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “galaxy”

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).galaxylands here:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “filter” (#4,449), “globe” (#4,451), “feeding” (#4,448). Among 2,313 “G” headwords, “galaxy” is #4,450. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around galaxy (IPA /ˈɡæl.ək.si/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #4,450 among 2,313 “G” headwords. Wiktionary lists 4 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for galaxy, with forms such as "aglaxy", "gaalxy", and "galaxxy". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 3 confusable-pair relationships, "galley", "Galway", "gala", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English galaxye, galaxie, from Old French galaxie, from Latin galaxias, from Ancient Greek γαλαξίας (galaxías, “Milky Way”), shortening of γαλαξίας κύκλος (galaxías kúklos, “milky circle”), from γάλα (gála, “milk”). The correct English form is galaxy, spelled G-A-L-A-X-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    The Milky Way; the apparent band of concentrated stars which appears in the night sky over earth.
  2. 2
    Any of the collections of many millions or billions of stars, galactic dust, black holes, etc. existing as independent and coherent systems, of which there are billions in the known universe.
  3. 3
    An assemblage of things or people seen as luminous or brilliant.
  4. 4
    Any print or pattern reminiscent of a galaxy, generally consisting of blending, semiopaque patches of vibrant color on a dark background.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. So may thy cheekes red outweare scarlet dye, / And their white, whitenesse of the Galaxie [...].
  2. Grecian imagination ascribed to the galaxy or milky way an origin in the teeming breast of the queen of heaven[.]

Etymology

From Middle English galaxye, galaxie, from Old French galaxie, from Latin galaxias, from Ancient Greek γαλαξίας (galaxías, “Milky Way”), shortening of γαλαξίας κύκλος (galaxías kúklos, “milky circle”), from γάλα (gála, “milk”).

Synonyms

Gstar citytrichiliocosmgalaxyisland universe

This word in other languages

galaxia(Español)galaxie(Français)Galaxie(Deutsch)galáxia(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • aglaxy
  • gaalxy
  • galaxxy
  • galaxyy
  • galayx
  • gallaxy
  • galxay
  • ggalaxy
  • glaaxy

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

aglaxy2gaalxy2galaxxy1galaxyy1galayx2gallaxy1galxay2ggalaxy1
Edit distance from "galaxy"

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 "galaxy"?
"galaxy" is spelled G-A-L-A-X-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɡæl.ək.si/.
What does "galaxy" mean?
As a noun, "galaxy" means: The Milky Way; the apparent band of concentrated stars which appears in the night sky over earth.
What words are commonly confused with "galaxy"?
"galaxy" is commonly confused with "galley", "Galway", "gala". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "galaxy"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "galaxy" is /ˈɡæl.ək.si/. 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 "galaxy"?
From Middle English galaxye, galaxie, from Old French galaxie, from Latin galaxias, from Ancient Greek γαλαξίας (galaxías, “Milky Way”), shortening of γαλαξίας κύκλος (galaxías kúklos, “milky circle”), from γάλα (gála, “milk”). 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 "galaxy", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

filter#4,449grades#4,452Greece#4,453intent#4,457

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (9 here; floor ≥5).

equipped9 variantsdrives9 variantsKennedy9 variantscounts9 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list