legally

/ˈliːɡəli/

//ˈliːɡəli// adv

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

"legally" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“legally” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #5,058. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#5,058
frequency rank, English
2,297
“L” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
5
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - As permitted by law; not contrary to law.

Corpus desk

Index EN-legally · legally · English

legally · rank #5,058 · 9 variants · 5 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #5,058
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 5 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,297
  • PHOTO-FINISH ken

Nearest frequency peer: ken (-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 “legally”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “legally” 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).

legally vs locally
71% similar
legally vs legal
71% similar
legally vs Lally
57% similar

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

Key facts for legally
PropertyValue
Headwordlegally
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdverb
IPA/ˈliːɡəli/
Letters7
Frequency rank#5,058
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs5
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “legally”

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).legallylands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “ken” (#5,057), “lied” (#5,059), “Jose” (#5,056). Among 2,297 “L” headwords, “legally” is #5,058. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around legally (IPA /ˈliːɡəli/), anadverb. Corpus frequency is #5,058 among 2,297 “L” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for legally, with forms such as "elgally", "leaglly", and "legallyy". 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 5 confusable-pair relationships, "locally", "legal", "Lally", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From legal + -ly. Piecewise doublet of leally and loyally. The correct English form is legally, spelled L-E-G-A-L-L-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    As permitted by law; not contrary to law.
  2. 2
    From a legal perspective.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. You can legally park in the lot on weekends without paying the fee, they won't ticket you.
  2. On the question of whether a memorandum of understanding is legally binding, British courts have held that this is determined by the presence (or, as the case may be, absence) of an intention to create a legal obligation, on the part of the states parties concerned, at the time of entry into the arrangement.

Etymology

From legal + -ly. Piecewise doublet of leally and loyally.

This word in other languages

legalmente(Español)légalement(Français)legal(Deutsch)legalmente(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • elgally
  • leaglly
  • legallyy
  • legaly
  • legalyl
  • leggally
  • leglaly
  • lgeally
  • llegally

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

elgally2leaglly2legallyy1legaly1legalyl2leggally1leglaly2lgeally2
Edit distance from "legally"

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 "legally"?
"legally" is spelled L-E-G-A-L-L-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈliːɡəli/.
What does "legally" mean?
As an adverb, "legally" means: As permitted by law; not contrary to law.
What words are commonly confused with "legally"?
"legally" is commonly confused with "locally", "legal", "Lally". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "legally"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "legally" is /ˈliːɡəli/. 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 "legally"?
From legal + -ly. Piecewise doublet of leally and loyally. 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 "legally", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Ontario#5,068gravity#5,046Orleans#5,070phoenix#5,072

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (9 here; floor ≥5).

holder9 variantshabits9 variantsTennessee9 variantsattract9 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list