religious

/ɹɪˈlɪd͡ʒ.əs/

//ɹɪˈlɪd͡ʒ.əs// adj

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

"religious" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“religious” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #1,497 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.

#1,497
frequency rank, English
9
letters
12
tracked misspellings
3
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Concerning religion.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

religious vs religiously
82% similar
religious vs religion
78% similar
religious vs religions
89% similar

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

Key facts for religious
PropertyValue
Headwordreligious
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ɹɪˈlɪd͡ʒ.əs/
Letters9
Frequency rank#1,497
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs3
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “religious” 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). religious 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 religious is 9 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ɹɪˈlɪd͡ʒ.əs/. Corpus data places it at rank #1,497 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 4 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 religious, with forms such as "erligious", "reilgious", and "relgiious". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 3 confusable-pair relationships, "religiously", "religion", "religions", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English religiouse, religious, religius, religeous, from Anglo-Norman religieus, religius, from Old French religious, religieux, and their source, Latin religiōsus (“religious, superstitious, conscientious”), from religiō. Doublet of religieux. The correct English form is religious, spelled R-E-L-I-G-I-O-U-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    Concerning religion.
  2. 2
    Committed to the practice or adherence of religion.
  3. 3
    Highly dedicated, as one would be to a religion.
  4. 4
    Belonging or pertaining to a religious order.

Etymology

From Middle English religiouse, religious, religius, religeous, from Anglo-Norman religieus, religius, from Old French religious, religieux, and their source, Latin religiōsus (“religious, superstitious, conscientious”), from religiō. Doublet of religieux.

Antonyms

irreligiousprofanesecularatheisticareligiousirreligiousantonym(s) ofseculardiocesan

This word in other languages

religioso(Español)religieux(Français)religiös(Deutsch)religioso(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: erligious,reilgious,relgiious,religgious,religiosu,religiouss,religiuos,religoius,reliigous,relligious,rleigious,rreligious

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

erligious2reilgious2relgiious2religgious1religiosu2religiouss1religiuos2religoius2
Edit distance from "religious"

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 "religious"?
"religious" is spelled R-E-L-I-G-I-O-U-S. The IPA pronunciation is /ɹɪˈlɪd͡ʒ.əs/.
What does "religious" mean?
As an adjective, "religious" means: Concerning religion.
What words are commonly confused with "religious"?
"religious" is commonly confused with "religiously", "religion", "religions". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "religious"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "religious" is /ɹɪˈlɪd͡ʒ.əs/. 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 "religious"?
From Middle English religiouse, religious, religius, religeous, from Anglo-Norman religieus, religius, from Old French religious, religieux, and their source, Latin religiōsus (“religious, superstitious, conscientious”), from religiō. Doublet of r... 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 “religious”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is R-E-L-I-G-I-O-U-S - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ɹɪˈlɪd͡ʒ.əs/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “religiously” - see the side-by-side comparison. religious vs religiously
  • 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