gladly

/ˈɡlædli/

//ˈɡlædli// adv

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

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

The verdict

“gladly” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #11,707. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#11,707
frequency rank, English
2,313
“G” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
8
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - In a glad manner; happily.

Corpus desk

Index EN-gladly · gladly · English

gladly · rank #11,707 · 10 variants · 8 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #11,707
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 8 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,313
  • PHOTO-FINISH goodwill

Nearest frequency peer: goodwill (+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 “gladly”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “gladly” 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).

gladly vs godly
67% similar
gladly vs Grady
50% similar
gladly vs Gladys
50% similar

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

Key facts for gladly
PropertyValue
Headwordgladly
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdverb
IPA/ˈɡlædli/
Letters6
Frequency rank#11,707
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs8
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “gladly”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).gladlylands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “goodwill” (#11,708), “gears” (#11,705), “govern” (#11,709). Among 2,313 “G” headwords, “gladly” is #11,707. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around gladly (IPA /ˈɡlædli/), anadverb. Corpus frequency is #11,707 among 2,313 “G” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for gladly, with forms such as "galdly", "ggladly", and "gladdly". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 8 confusable-pair relationships, "godly", "Grady", "Gladys", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English gladly, gladliche, from Old English glædlīċe (“gladly”); equivalent to glad + -ly. Compare Danish glædelig (“joyful”), Icelandic gleðilegur (“delightful”). More at glad, -ly. The correct English form is gladly, spelled G-L-A-D-L-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    In a glad manner; happily.
  2. 2
    Willingly; certainly.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. As a political system democracy seems to me extraordinarily foolish, but I would not go out of my way to protest against it. My servant is, so far as I am concerned, welcome to as many votes as he can get. I would very gladly make mine over to him if I could.
  2. 'Find me a job and I'll gladly go to work.'

Etymology

From Middle English gladly, gladliche, from Old English glædlīċe (“gladly”); equivalent to glad + -ly. Compare Danish glædelig (“joyful”), Icelandic gleðilegur (“delightful”). More at glad, -ly.

This word in other languages

gustosamente(Español)heureusement(Français)gern(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • galdly
  • ggladly
  • gladdly
  • gladlly
  • gladlyy
  • gladyl
  • glaldy
  • gldaly
  • glladly
  • lgadly

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of gladly - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

galdly2ggladly1gladdly1gladlly1gladlyy1gladyl2glaldy2gldaly2
Edit distance from "gladly"

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 "gladly"?
"gladly" is spelled G-L-A-D-L-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɡlædli/.
What does "gladly" mean?
As an adverb, "gladly" means: In a glad manner; happily.
What words are commonly confused with "gladly"?
"gladly" is commonly confused with "godly", "Grady", "Gladys". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "gladly"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "gladly" is /ˈɡlædli/. 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 "gladly"?
From Middle English gladly, gladliche, from Old English glædlīċe (“gladly”); equivalent to glad + -ly. Compare Danish glædelig (“joyful”), Icelandic gleðilegur (“delightful”). More at glad, -ly. 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 "gladly", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

govern#11,709hacker#11,713fucker#11,700Hassan#11,717

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (10 here; floor ≥5).

goodwill10 variantsgradual10 variantsgarrison10 variantsfixture10 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list