lethally

/ˈliːθəli/

//ˈliːθəli// adv

"lethally" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“lethally” is uncommon English (frequency #81,503 among 2,297 “L” headwords), classed as an adverb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#81,503
frequency rank, English
2,297
“L” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - In a lethal manner, in manner which is or will be fatal.

Corpus desk

Index EN-lethally · lethally · English

lethally · rank #81,503 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #81,503
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,297
  • PHOTO-FINISH leva

Nearest frequency peer: leva (+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.

Long-tail ranks near “lethally”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “lethally” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for lethally
PropertyValue
Headwordlethally
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdverb
IPA/ˈliːθəli/
Letters8
Frequency rank#81,503
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “lethally” in English

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).lethallyfalls in this rarity band:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “leva” (#81,504), “lengthier” (#81,501), “legalese” (#81,500). Among 2,297 “L” headwords, “lethally” is #81,503. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

lethally is uncommon English at frequency #81,503 among 2,297 “L” headwords, classed as anadverb, transcribed /ˈliːθəli/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "In a lethal manner, in manner which is or will be fatal.".

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for lethally, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: From lethal + -ly. The correct English form is lethally, spelled L-E-T-H-A-L-L-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    In a lethal manner, in manner which is or will be fatal.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. He was lethally poisoned by the cobra and died a day later of it.

Etymology

From lethal + -ly.

This word in other languages

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 "lethally"?
"lethally" is spelled L-E-T-H-A-L-L-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈliːθəli/.
What does "lethally" mean?
As an adverb, "lethally" means: In a lethal manner, in manner which is or will be fatal.
How do you pronounce "lethally"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "lethally" is /ˈliːθəli/. 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 "lethally"?
From lethal + -ly. 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 "lethally", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list