illegally

/ɪˈliːɡəli/

//ɪˈliːɡəli// adv

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

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

The verdict

“illegally” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #8,679. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#8,679
frequency rank, English
2,140
“I” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - In a manner contrary to law.

Corpus desk

Index EN-illegally · illegally · English

illegally · rank #8,679 · 10 variants · 2 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #8,679
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 2 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,140
  • PHOTO-FINISH hypothesis

Nearest frequency peer: hypothesis (-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 “illegally”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “illegally” 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).

illegally vs illegal
78% similar
illegally vs illegality
80% similar

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

Key facts for illegally
PropertyValue
Headwordillegally
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdverb
IPA/ɪˈliːɡəli/
Letters9
Frequency rank#8,679
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “illegally”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).illegallylands here:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “hypothesis” (#8,678), “hiking” (#8,677), “inclined” (#8,681). Among 2,140 “I” headwords, “illegally” is #8,679. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around illegally (IPA /ɪˈliːɡəli/), anadverb. Corpus frequency is #8,679 among 2,140 “I” headwords. Dominant gloss: "In a manner contrary to law.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for illegally, with forms such as "ilegally", "ilelgally", and "illeaglly". 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 2 confusable-pair relationships, "illegal", "illegality", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From illegal + -ly or il- + legally. The correct English form is illegally, spelled I-L-L-E-G-A-L-L-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    In a manner contrary to law.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. He received a ticket for illegally parking next to a fire hydrant.
  2. The dangers of scofflawry vary wildly. The person who illegally spits on the sidewalk remains disgusting, but clearly poses less risk to others than the company that illegally buries hazardous chemical waste in an unauthorized location.

Etymology

From illegal + -ly or il- + legally.

This word in other languages

ilegalmente(Español)illégalement(Français)illegal(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ilegally
  • ilelgally
  • illeaglly
  • illegallyy
  • illegaly
  • illegalyl
  • illeggally
  • illeglaly
  • illgeally
  • lilegally

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ilegally1ilelgally2illeaglly2illegallyy1illegaly1illegalyl2illeggally1illeglaly2
Edit distance from "illegally"

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 "illegally"?
"illegally" is spelled I-L-L-E-G-A-L-L-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ɪˈliːɡəli/.
What does "illegally" mean?
As an adverb, "illegally" means: In a manner contrary to law.
What words are commonly confused with "illegally"?
"illegally" is commonly confused with "illegal", "illegality". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "illegally"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "illegally" is /ɪˈliːɡəli/. 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 "illegally"?
From illegal + -ly or il- + legally. 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 "illegally", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

examining#8,663economist#8,660dissolved#8,656parenting#8,704

Similar misspelling depth

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

heather10 variantshaunted10 variantsMarshal10 variantsMuhammad10 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list