lengthy

adj

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

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

The verdict

“lengthy” has 12 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #8,953. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#8,953
frequency rank, English
2,297
“L” headwords
12
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Having length; long and overextended, especially in time rather than dimension.

Corpus desk

Index EN-lengthy · lengthy · English

lengthy · rank #8,953 · 12 variants · 2 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #8,953
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 2 pairs
  • VAR-MID 12 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,297
  • PHOTO-FINISH lang

Nearest frequency peer: lang (-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 “lengthy”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “lengthy” 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).

lengthy vs length
86% similar
lengthy vs lengthen
75% similar

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

Key facts for lengthy
PropertyValue
Headwordlengthy
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
Letters7
Frequency rank#8,953
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “lengthy”

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).lengthylands here:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “lang” (#8,952), “levy” (#8,954), “kirk” (#8,951). Among 2,297 “L” headwords, “lengthy” is #8,953. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 12 spelling variants around lengthy, anadjective. Corpus frequency is #8,953 among 2,297 “L” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for lengthy, with forms such as "elngthy", "legnthy", and "lenggthy". 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 2 confusable-pair relationships, "length", "lengthen", a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From length + -y. The correct English form is lengthy, spelled L-E-N-G-T-H-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    Having length; long and overextended, especially in time rather than dimension.
  2. 2
    Speaking or writing at length; long-winded.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. a lengthy text
  2. a lengthy discussion

Etymology

From length + -y.

This word in other languages

long(Français)lang(Deutsch)extensível(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • elngthy
  • legnthy
  • lenggthy
  • lenghty
  • lengthhy
  • lengthyy
  • lengtthy
  • lengtyh
  • lenngthy
  • lentghy
  • llengthy
  • lnegthy

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of lengthy - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

elngthy2legnthy2lenggthy1lenghty2lengthhy1lengthyy1lengtthy1lengtyh2
Edit distance from "lengthy"

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 "lengthy"?
"lengthy" is spelled L-E-N-G-T-H-Y.
What does "lengthy" mean?
As an adjective, "lengthy" means: Having length; long and overextended, especially in time rather than dimension.
What words are commonly confused with "lengthy"?
"lengthy" is commonly confused with "length", "lengthen". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
What is the origin of the word "lengthy"?
From length + -y. 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 "lengthy", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Herbert#8,943heavier#8,942O'Brien#8,964obscure#8,965

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (12 here; floor ≥5).

necklace12 variantsPeterson12 variantsgoverned12 variantsrailways12 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list