selectively
"selectively" is a 11-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“selectively” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #19,201 in English word frequency and used as an adverb.
- #19,201
- frequency rank, English
- 11
- letters
- 17
- tracked misspellings
- 2
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - In a selective manner, only affecting or applying to some selected cases.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | selectively |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adverb |
| Letters | 11 |
| Frequency rank | #19,201 |
| Misspellings tracked | 17 |
| Confusable pairs | 2 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “selectively” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for selectively is 11 letters long, classified as an adverb. Corpus data places it at rank #19,201 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "In a selective manner, only affecting or applying to some selected cases.".
Our generated misspelling index lists 17 likely wrong-spelling variants for selectively, with forms such as "eslectively", "seelctively", and "selcetively". 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 2 confusable-pair relationships, "selectivity", "selective", a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.
Etymologically, the entry records: From selective + -ly. The correct English form is selectively, spelled S-E-L-E-C-T-I-V-E-L-Y.
Definition
- 1In a selective manner, only affecting or applying to some selected cases.
Etymology
From selective + -ly.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: eslectively,seelctively,selcetively,selecctively,selecitvely,selectievly,selectivelly,selectivelyy,selectiveyl,selectivley,selectivvely,selecttively,selectviely,seletcively,sellectively,sleectively,sselectively
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of selectively - 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.
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 "selectively"?
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Using “selectively”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is S-E-L-E-C-T-I-V-E-L-Y - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Don't mix it up with “selectivity” - see the side-by-side comparison. selectively vs selectivity
- 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.