on the level
"on-the-level" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“on the level” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a prep_phrase. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 12
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Honest(ly), sincere(ly), straightforward(ly), fair(ly).
Corpus desk
Index EN-on-the-level · on the level · English
on the level · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-MEGA 12 letters
- VOW-4 4 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "O" thin
- PHOTO-UNK Peer pending
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.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | on the level |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Prep_phrase |
| Letters | 12 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “on the level” in English
Rare enough to double-check
on the level is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as aprep_phrase. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.
on the level doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.
Etymologically, the entry records: See the Citations page for examples showing the sense evolution. The correct English form is on the level, spelled O-N- -T-H-E- -L-E-V-E-L.
Definition
- 1Honest(ly), sincere(ly), straightforward(ly), fair(ly).
- 2Synonym of on the square (“discreet reference to freemasonry”).
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how on the level appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
He looks like a used car salesman, but he's really on the level, so you can trust him.
While I believe that the American people and the players want the game to be on the level, there are two or three things which, it strikes me, are not up to a high standard of honor.
Etymology
See the Citations page for examples showing the sense evolution.
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.