manifold
/ˈmænɪˌfoʊld/
"manifold" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“manifold” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #19,132 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.
- #19,132
- frequency rank, English
- 8
- letters
- 12
- tracked misspellings
- 1
- confusable pair
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Various in kind, quality, or manifestation; diverse.
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 | manifold |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | /ˈmænɪˌfoʊld/ |
| Letters | 8 |
| Frequency rank | #19,132 |
| Misspellings tracked | 12 |
| Confusable pairs | 1 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “manifold” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for manifold is 8 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈmænɪˌfoʊld/. Corpus data places it at rank #19,132 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for manifold, with forms such as "amnifold", "mainfold", and "manfiold". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 1 confusable-pair relationship, "marigold", a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English manifold, from Old English maniġfeald (“manifold, various, varied, complicated, numerous, abundant, plural”), from Proto-Germanic *managafalþaz, equivalent to many + -fold. Cognate with Middle High German manecvalt (“manifold”), Icelandi… The correct English form is manifold, spelled M-A-N-I-F-O-L-D.
Definition
- 1Various in kind, quality, or manifestation; diverse.
- 2Many in number; numerous.
- 3Complicated.
Etymology
From Middle English manifold, from Old English maniġfeald (“manifold, various, varied, complicated, numerous, abundant, plural”), from Proto-Germanic *managafalþaz, equivalent to many + -fold. Cognate with Middle High German manecvalt (“manifold”), Icelandic margfaldr (“multiple”). Compare also German mannigfaltig (“various”), Dutch menigvoudig (“various”), Danish mangefold (“multiple”), Swedish mångfald (“diversity”).
Synonyms
Antonyms
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: amnifold,mainfold,manfiold,maniffold,maniflod,manifodl,manifoldd,manifolld,maniofld,mannifold,mmanifold,mnaifold
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of manifold - 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.
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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Using “manifold”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is M-A-N-I-F-O-L-D - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈmænɪˌfoʊld/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “marigold” - see the side-by-side comparison. manifold vs marigold
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
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.