glory

/ˈɡlɔː.ɹi/

//ˈɡlɔː.ɹi// noun

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

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

The verdict

“glory” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #3,884 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#3,884
frequency rank, English
5
letters
8
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Great beauty and splendor.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

glory vs gor
60% similar
glory vs glow
60% similar
glory vs gore
60% similar

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

Key facts for glory
PropertyValue
Headwordglory
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈɡlɔː.ɹi/
Letters5
Frequency rank#3,884
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “glory” sits in English frequency

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for glory is 5 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈɡlɔː.ɹi/. Corpus data places it at rank #3,884 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 10 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for glory, with forms such as "gglory", "gllory", and "glorry". 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, "gor", "glow", "gore", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English glory, glorie, from Old French glorie (“glory”), from Latin glōria (“glory, fame, renown, praise, ambition, boasting”). Doublet of gloria. Displaced native Old English wuldor. The correct English form is glory, spelled G-L-O-R-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    Great beauty and splendor.
  2. 2
    Honour, admiration, or distinction, accorded by common consent to a person or thing; high reputation; renown.
  3. 3
    That quality in a person or thing which secures general praise or honour.
  4. 4
    Worship or praise.
  5. 5
    An optical phenomenon, consisting of concentric rings and somewhat similar to a rainbow, caused by sunlight or moonlight interacting with the water droplets that compose mist or clouds, centered on the antisolar or antilunar point.
  6. 6
    Victory; success.
  7. 7
    An emanation of light supposed to shine from beings that are specially holy. It is represented in art by rays of gold, or the like, proceeding from the head or body, or by a disk, or a mere line.
  8. 8
    The manifestation of the presence of God as perceived by humans in Abrahamic religions.
  9. 9
    Pride; boastfulness; arrogance.
  10. 10
    Something glorious.

Etymology

From Middle English glory, glorie, from Old French glorie (“glory”), from Latin glōria (“glory, fame, renown, praise, ambition, boasting”). Doublet of gloria. Displaced native Old English wuldor.

Synonyms

halopraiseworshipfamehonorhonour

This word in other languages

gloria(Español)gloire(Français)Pracht(Deutsch)glória(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: gglory,gllory,glorry,gloryy,gloyr,glroy,golry,lgory

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

gglory1gllory1glorry1gloryy1gloyr2glroy2golry2lgory2
Edit distance from "glory"

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 "glory"?
"glory" is spelled G-L-O-R-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɡlɔː.ɹi/.
What does "glory" mean?
As a noun, "glory" means: Great beauty and splendor.
What words are commonly confused with "glory"?
"glory" is commonly confused with "gor", "glow", "gore". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "glory"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "glory" is /ˈɡlɔː.ɹi/. 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 "glory"?
From Middle English glory, glorie, from Old French glorie (“glory”), from Latin glōria (“glory, fame, renown, praise, ambition, boasting”). Doublet of gloria. Displaced native Old English wuldor. 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.

Using “glory”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is G-L-O-R-Y - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈɡlɔː.ɹi/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “gor” - see the side-by-side comparison. glory vs gor
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list