layer
/lɛə/
"layer" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“layer” has 7 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #3,635. The variants make it a useful spelling check.
- #3,635
- frequency rank, English
- 2,297
- “L” headwords
- 7
- tracked misspellings
- 20
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A single thickness of some material covering a surface.
Corpus desk
Index EN-layer · layer · English
layer · rank #3,635 · 7 variants · 20 confusables
- FREQ-COMMON #3,635
- LEN-MID 5 letters
- VOW-3 3 vowels
- CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
- VAR-MID 7 variants
- BOOK-MID 2,297
- PHOTO-FINISH landing
Nearest frequency peer: landing (-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 “layer”
Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)
- installed
installed
96,369 corpus weight
- Israeli
Israeli
96,368 corpus weight
- landing
landing
96,367 corpus weight
- layer
layer
96,366 corpus weight
- managing
managing
96,365 corpus weight
- marry
marry
96,364 corpus weight
What this shows Bars show where “layer” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | layer |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /lɛə/ |
| Letters | 5 |
| Frequency rank | #3,635 |
| Misspellings tracked | 7 |
| Confusable pairs | 20 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “layer” sits in English frequency
A misspelling magnet
The generator records 7 spelling variants around layer (IPA /lɛə/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #3,635 among 2,297 “L” headwords. Wiktionary lists 7 senses, so context still picks the gloss.
Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for layer, with forms such as "alyer", "laeyr", and "layerr". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "lye", "lays", "leer", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.
Etymologically, the entry records: Appears at first glance to be from Middle English leyer, leyare (“a layer of stones or bricks”), equivalent to lay + -er. In which case, ultimately identical to etymology 2 below. For the pronunciation compare prayer. However, this word layer (referring to … The correct English form is layer, spelled L-A-Y-E-R.
Definition
- 1A single thickness of some material covering a surface.
- 2A single thickness of some material covering a surface.
- 3A (usually) horizontal deposit; a stratum.
- 4One of the items in a hierarchy.
- 5One in a stack of (initially transparent) drawing surfaces that comprise an image; used to keep elements of an image separate so that they can be modified independently from one another.
- 6One of the seven network switch pieces in the Open Systems Interconnection model: application, presentation, session, transport, network, data link, and physical.
- 7An alternative keymap accessed through a modifier key or toggle.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how layer appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
Wrap the loaf in two layers of aluminum foil before putting it in the oven.
After the first coat of paint dried, he applied another layer.
Etymology
Appears at first glance to be from Middle English leyer, leyare (“a layer of stones or bricks”), equivalent to lay + -er. In which case, ultimately identical to etymology 2 below. For the pronunciation compare prayer. However, this word layer (referring to a thickness of a material covering a surface) has also been argued to be from a respelling of an obsolete sense of the word lair that was once used by farmers, which had to do with soil. The connecting sense between the usual meaning of lair and the specialised farming meaning was: an area where cows typically rest, the ground being fertilised by their waste. Related to lie, ledger.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as:
- alyer
- laeyr
- layerr
- layre
- layyer
- llayer
- lyaer
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of layer - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.
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
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What does "layer" mean?
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Similar English words by spelling shape
Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "layer", not the corpus desk frequency band.
Same letter count
Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).
Similar misspelling depth
Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (7 here; floor ≥5).
What to do next
You've looked up "layer". Here's where to go from here.
- "layer" maps to 20 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "lye". View pair
- 7 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
- Usage frequency rank #3,635 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
- Browse more English words in the "L" letter cohort. L–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.