prying

/ˈpɹaɪ.ɪŋ/

//ˈpɹaɪ.ɪŋ// verb

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

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

The verdict

“prying” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #34,239. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#34,239
frequency rank, English
4,417
“P” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - present participle and gerund of pry

Corpus desk

Index EN-prying · prying · English

prying · rank #34,239 · 10 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #34,239
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,417
  • PHOTO-FINISH Ptolemy

Nearest frequency peer: Ptolemy (+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 “prying”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “prying” 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).

prying vs puking
67% similar
prying vs purging
71% similar
prying vs purring
71% similar

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

Key facts for prying
PropertyValue
Headwordprying
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ˈpɹaɪ.ɪŋ/
Letters6
Frequency rank#34,239
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “prying”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).pryinglands 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 “Ptolemy” (#34,240), “pulsing” (#34,241), “programmatic” (#34,236). Among 4,417 “P” headwords, “prying” is #34,239. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around prying (IPA /ˈpɹaɪ.ɪŋ/), averb. Corpus frequency is #34,239 among 4,417 “P” headwords. Dominant gloss: "present participle and gerund of pry".

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for prying, with forms such as "pprying", "priyng", and "prrying". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "puking", "purging", "purring", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

No documented word history exists for this headword, so any spelling logic here comes from how the word's sounds map to letters, not a documented origin story. The correct English form is prying, spelled P-R-Y-I-N-G.

Definition

  1. 1
    present participle and gerund of pry

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • pprying
  • priyng
  • prrying
  • pryign
  • pryingg
  • pryinng
  • prynig
  • pryying
  • pyring
  • rpying

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of prying - 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.

pprying1priyng2prrying1pryign2pryingg1pryinng1prynig2pryying1
Edit distance from "prying"

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 "prying"?
"prying" is spelled P-R-Y-I-N-G. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈpɹaɪ.ɪŋ/.
What does "prying" mean?
As a verb, "prying" means: present participle and gerund of pry
What words are commonly confused with "prying"?
"prying" is commonly confused with "puking", "purging", "purring". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "prying"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "prying" is /ˈpɹaɪ.ɪŋ/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "prying" come from?
"prying" is a English word. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for this and other words across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German on PlainSpell.
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 "prying", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Quetta#34,246pearly#34,219peachy#34,218papaya#34,216

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (10 here; floor ≥5).

reshape10 variantsOrpheus10 variantsmeatball10 variantsMcHugh10 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list