irregular

/ɪˈɹɛɡ.jʊ.lə/

//ɪˈɹɛɡ.jʊ.lə// adj

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

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

The verdict

“irregular” has 11 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #11,238. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#11,238
frequency rank, English
2,140
“I” headwords
11
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Nonstandard; not conforming to rules or expectations.

Corpus desk

Index EN-irregular · irregular · English

irregular · rank #11,238 · 11 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #11,238
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-MID 11 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,140
  • PHOTO-FINISH insulting

Nearest frequency peer: insulting (-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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “irregular”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “irregular” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

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).

irregular vs irregularly
82% similar

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

Key facts for irregular
PropertyValue
Headwordirregular
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ɪˈɹɛɡ.jʊ.lə/
Letters9
Frequency rank#11,238
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “irregular” 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). irregular lands here:

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

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

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 11 spelling variants around irregular (IPA /ɪˈɹɛɡ.jʊ.lə/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #11,238 among 2,140 “I” headwords. Wiktionary lists 6 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for irregular, with forms such as "iregular", "irergular", and "irreggular". 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 1 confusable-pair relationship, "irregularly", 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 irreguler, from Old French irreguler, from Medieval Latin or Late Latin irrēgulāris, from in- + regularis, equivalent to ir- + regular. The correct English form is irregular, spelled I-R-R-E-G-U-L-A-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    Nonstandard; not conforming to rules or expectations.
  2. 2
    Rough (of a surface).
  3. 3
    Without symmetry, regularity, or uniformity.
  4. 4
    Not regular; having sides that are not equal or angles that are not equal.
  5. 5
    Whose faces are not all regular polygons (or are not equally inclined to each other).
  6. 6
    Not following the regular or expected patterns of inflection in a given language.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. ‘ “It would be most irregular Grandpa!” says Miss Cecily frowning and tapping her foot. “Well, we’re a pretty irregular family so that’s neither here nor there,” says the old man, impish like. [...] ’
  2. The hovel stood in the centre of what had once been a vegetable garden, but was now a patch of rank weeds. Surrounding this, almost like a zareba, was an irregular ring of gorse and brambles, an unclaimed vestige of the original common.

Etymology

From Middle English irreguler, from Old French irreguler, from Medieval Latin or Late Latin irrēgulāris, from in- + regularis, equivalent to ir- + regular.

Synonyms

abnormalsingularstrangecoarsesalebrousroughunstableunsteadyheteroclite

Antonyms

regular

This word in other languages

irregular(Español)irrégulier(Français)irregulär(Deutsch)irregular(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • iregular
  • irergular
  • irreggular
  • irregluar
  • irregualr
  • irregularr
  • irregullar
  • irregulra
  • irreuglar
  • irrgeular
  • riregular

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

iregular1irergular2irreggular1irregluar2irregualr2irregularr1irregullar1irregulra2
Edit distance from "irregular"

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.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of September 3, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "irregular"?
"irregular" is spelled I-R-R-E-G-U-L-A-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ɪˈɹɛɡ.jʊ.lə/.
What does "irregular" mean?
As an adjective, "irregular" means: Nonstandard; not conforming to rules or expectations.
What words are commonly confused with "irregular"?
"irregular" is commonly confused with "irregularly". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "irregular"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "irregular" is /ɪˈɹɛɡ.jʊ.lə/. 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 "irregular"?
From Middle English irreguler, from Old French irreguler, from Medieval Latin or Late Latin irrēgulāris, from in- + regularis, equivalent to ir- + regular. 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 "irregular", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

insulting#11,237premature#11,272residency#11,278chronicle#11,181

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (11 here; floor ≥5).

honoured11 variantsFrances11 variantsPorsche11 variantsdelegate11 variants

What to do next

You've looked up "irregular". Here's where to go from here.

  • This headword has one recorded confusable pair with "irregularly". View pair
  • 11 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
  • Usage frequency rank #11,238 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more English words in the "I" letter cohort. I–Z browse
  • PlainSpell rotates a curated Word of the Day from the English corpus, a passive way to discover vocabulary. Word of the Day

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

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