Manila

/mɐˈni.lɐ/

//mɐˈni.lɐ// name

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

"manila" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“Manila” has 8 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #8,572. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#8,572
frequency rank, English
4,057
“M” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The capital city of the Philippines; the regional capital of Metro Manila, in the island of Luzon.

Corpus desk

Index EN-manila · Manila · English

Manila · rank #8,572 · 8 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #8,572
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,057
  • PHOTO-FINISH Luther

Nearest frequency peer: Luther (-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 “Manila”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “Manila” 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).

Manila vs Mila
67% similar
Manila vs Maria
67% similar
Manila vs manly
50% similar

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

Key facts for Manila
PropertyValue
HeadwordManila
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechProper noun
IPA/mɐˈni.lɐ/
Letters6
Frequency rank#8,572
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “Manila”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).Manilalands 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 “Luther” (#8,571), “mankind” (#8,573), “lining” (#8,570). Among 4,057 “M” headwords, “Manila” is #8,572. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around Manila (IPA /mɐˈni.lɐ/), aproper noun. Corpus frequency is #8,572 among 4,057 “M” headwords. Wiktionary lists 7 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for Manila, with forms such as "amnila", "mainla", and "manial". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "Mila", "Maria", "manly", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Spanish Manila, from Tagalog Maynila, from may (“there is”) + nila (“indigo”), Tagalog nila from Sanskrit नील (nīla). The correct English form is Manila, spelled M-A-N-I-L-A.

Definition

  1. 1
    The capital city of the Philippines; the regional capital of Metro Manila, in the island of Luzon.
  2. 2
    Metro Manila, the National Capital Region (NCR).
  3. 3
    the entirety of Luzon.
  4. 4
    The national government or administrative authority of the Philippines.
  5. 5
    A small town, the county seat of Daggett County, Utah, United States.
  6. 6
    A census-designated place in Humboldt County, California, United States.
  7. 7
    A city in Mississippi County, Arkansas, United States.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Chinese traders, mostly from the southern ports of Amoy (Hsia-men) and Canton, took raw silk, fabrics, and apparel to Manila, where these cargoes were sold for silver and carried back for sale in the New World.
  2. PNR trips were suspended at past 1 p.m. after the temblor struck Camarines Norte, but was felt in the city of Manila at Intensity 3.

Etymology

From Spanish Manila, from Tagalog Maynila, from may (“there is”) + nila (“indigo”), Tagalog nila from Sanskrit नील (nīla).

This word in other languages

Manila(Español)Manille(Français)Manila(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • amnila
  • mainla
  • manial
  • manilla
  • manlia
  • mannila
  • mmanila
  • mnaila

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

amnila2mainla2manial2manilla1manlia2mannila1mmanila1mnaila2
Edit distance from "Manila"

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 "Manila"?
"Manila" is spelled M-A-N-I-L-A. The IPA pronunciation is /mɐˈni.lɐ/.
What does "Manila" mean?
As a proper noun, "Manila" means: The capital city of the Philippines; the regional capital of Metro Manila, in the island of Luzon.
What words are commonly confused with "Manila"?
"Manila" is commonly confused with "Mila", "Maria", "manly". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "Manila"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Manila" is /mɐˈni.lɐ/. 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 "Manila"?
From Spanish Manila, from Tagalog Maynila, from may (“there is”) + nila (“indigo”), Tagalog nila from Sanskrit नील (nīla). 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 "Manila", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Luther#8,571lining#8,570metric#8,577naming#8,579

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

opener8 variantsimmense8 variantsheader8 variantsFerrari8 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list