prayer

/pɹɛə/

//pɹɛə// noun

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

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

The verdict

“prayer” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #3,520 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#3,520
frequency rank, English
6
letters
9
tracked misspellings
18
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A practice of communicating with one's God, or with some spiritual entity.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

prayer vs Pryor
50% similar
prayer vs prays
67% similar
prayer vs proper
67% similar

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

Key facts for prayer
PropertyValue
Headwordprayer
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/pɹɛə/
Letters6
Frequency rank#3,520
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs18
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “prayer” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). prayer lands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for prayer is 6 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /pɹɛə/. Corpus data places it at rank #3,520 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 6 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for prayer, with forms such as "paryer", "pprayer", and "praeyr". 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 18 confusable-pair relationships, "Pryor", "prays", "proper", and more, 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 preiere, from Old French preiere, from Early Medieval Latin precāria, derived from Latin precem. Displaced native Old English ġebed (whence modern English bead). The correct English form is prayer, spelled P-R-A-Y-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    A practice of communicating with one's God, or with some spiritual entity.
  2. 2
    An act of praying.
  3. 3
    The specific words or methods used for praying.
  4. 4
    A meeting held for the express purpose of praying.
  5. 5
    A request; a petition.
  6. 6
    The remotest hope or chance.

Etymology

From Middle English preiere, from Old French preiere, from Early Medieval Latin precāria, derived from Latin precem. Displaced native Old English ġebed (whence modern English bead).

Synonyms

orisonprecationbead

This word in other languages

oración(Español)prière(Français)Gebet(Deutsch)oração(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: paryer,pprayer,praeyr,prayerr,prayre,prayyer,prrayer,pryaer,rpayer

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of prayer - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

paryer2pprayer1praeyr2prayerr1prayre2prayyer1prrayer1pryaer2
Edit distance from "prayer"

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 "prayer"?
"prayer" is spelled P-R-A-Y-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /pɹɛə/.
What does "prayer" mean?
As a noun, "prayer" means: A practice of communicating with one's God, or with some spiritual entity.
What words are commonly confused with "prayer"?
"prayer" is commonly confused with "Pryor", "prays", "proper". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "prayer"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "prayer" is /pɹɛə/. 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 "prayer"?
From Middle English preiere, from Old French preiere, from Early Medieval Latin precāria, derived from Latin precem. Displaced native Old English ġebed (whence modern English bead). 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.

Using “prayer”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is P-R-A-Y-E-R - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /pɹɛə/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “Pryor” - see the side-by-side comparison. prayer vs Pryor
  • 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list