# Lesley

> English word · Proper noun · frequency rank #21,847

## Definitions
1. A Scottish surname.
2. A female given name transferred from the surname, used since the 18th century. Popular in the U.K. in the mid-20th century.
3. A male given name transferred from the surname.

## Etymology
From a placename in Aberdeenshire, originally Lesslyn, Scottish Gaelic lios cuileann (“garden of hollies”).

## Easily confused with
- **lisle** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/lesley-vs-lisle)
- **lesser** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/lesley-vs-lesser)
- **Leslie** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/lesley-vs-leslie)
- **Lester** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/lesley-vs-lester)
- **lessen** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/lesley-vs-lessen)
- **lessee** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/lesley-vs-lessee)
- **Lumley** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/lesley-vs-lumley)

## Common misspellings (9)
`elsley`, `lelsey`, `lesely`, `lesleyy`, `leslley`, `leslye`, `lessley`, `llesley`, `lseley`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/lesley