respectfully

/ɹɪˈspɛkt.fə.li/

//ɹɪˈspɛkt.fə.li// adv

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

"respectfully" is a 12-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“respectfully” has 18 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #15,691. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#15,691
frequency rank, English
3,094
“R” headwords
18
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - In a respectful manner.

Corpus desk

Index EN-respectfully · respectfully · English

respectfully · rank #15,691 · 18 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #15,691
  • LEN-MEGA 12 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 18 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,094
  • PHOTO-FINISH rethink

Nearest frequency peer: rethink (+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 “respectfully”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “respectfully” 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).

respectfully vs respectful
83% similar

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

Key facts for respectfully
PropertyValue
Headwordrespectfully
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdverb
IPA/ɹɪˈspɛkt.fə.li/
Letters12
Frequency rank#15,691
Misspellings tracked18
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “respectfully”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).respectfullylands 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 “rethink” (#15,692), “reggae” (#15,689), “reviewer” (#15,693). Among 3,094 “R” headwords, “respectfully” is #15,691. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 18 spelling variants around respectfully (IPA /ɹɪˈspɛkt.fə.li/), anadverb. Corpus frequency is #15,691 among 3,094 “R” headwords. Dominant gloss: "In a respectful manner.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 18 likely wrong-spelling variants for respectfully, with forms such as "erspectfully", "repsectfully", and "resepctfully". 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 1 confusable-pair relationship, "respectful", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From respectful + -ly. The correct English form is respectfully, spelled R-E-S-P-E-C-T-F-U-L-L-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    In a respectful manner.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. York got down and said very respectfully, "I beg your pardon, my lady, but these horses have not been reined up for three years, and my lord said it would be safer to bring them to it by degrees; but if your ladyship pleases, I can take them up a little more."
  2. There is something wonderful and sad about Ohio around Christmastime — maybe the reasons are the licentious, Yukon sleddog cold and the buildings on the main streets of college towns standing respectfully buttressed with graceful wings...

Etymology

From respectful + -ly.

This word in other languages

respetuosamente(Español)respectueusement(Français)respektvoll(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • erspectfully
  • repsectfully
  • resepctfully
  • respcetfully
  • respecctfully
  • respecftully
  • respectffully
  • respectfluly
  • respectfullyy
  • respectfuly
  • respectfulyl
  • respecttfully
  • respectuflly
  • respetcfully
  • resppectfully
  • resspectfully
  • rrespectfully
  • rsepectfully

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of respectfully - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

erspectfully2repsectfully2resepctfully2respcetfully2respecctfully1respecftully2respectffully1respectfluly2
Edit distance from "respectfully"

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 "respectfully"?
"respectfully" is spelled R-E-S-P-E-C-T-F-U-L-L-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ɹɪˈspɛkt.fə.li/.
What does "respectfully" mean?
As an adverb, "respectfully" means: In a respectful manner.
What words are commonly confused with "respectfully"?
"respectfully" is commonly confused with "respectful". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "respectfully"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "respectfully" is /ɹɪˈspɛkt.fə.li/. 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 "respectfully"?
From respectful + -ly. 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 "respectfully", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 12 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

accelerating#15,740irresistible#15,639inconvenient#15,633biodiversity#15,574

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (18 here; floor ≥5).

consultancy18 variantscontraction18 variantscontrasting18 variantsconvergence18 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list