selfishly

adv

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

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

The verdict

“selfishly” has 15 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #45,076. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#45,076
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
15
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - In a selfish manner; with regard to private interest only or chiefly.

Corpus desk

Index EN-selfishly · selfishly · English

selfishly · rank #45,076 · 15 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #45,076
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 15 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH Seguin

Nearest frequency peer: Seguin (-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 “selfishly”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “selfishly” 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).

selfishly vs selfish
78% similar

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

Key facts for selfishly
PropertyValue
Headwordselfishly
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdverb
Letters9
Frequency rank#45,076
Misspellings tracked15
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “selfishly”

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).selfishlylands here:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “Seguin” (#45,075), “serif” (#45,077), “serine” (#45,078). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “selfishly” is #45,076. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 15 spelling variants around selfishly, anadverb. Corpus frequency is #45,076 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Dominant gloss: "In a selfish manner; with regard to private interest only or chiefly.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 15 likely wrong-spelling variants for selfishly, with forms such as "eslfishly", "seflishly", and "selffishly". 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 1 confusable-pair relationship, "selfish", a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From selfish + -ly. The correct English form is selfishly, spelled S-E-L-F-I-S-H-L-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    In a selfish manner; with regard to private interest only or chiefly.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. What emerges is a softly supernatural story about a futurist who behaved as selfishly as any retrograde male genius.

Etymology

From selfish + -ly.

Antonyms

unselfishly

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • eslfishly
  • seflishly
  • selffishly
  • selfihsly
  • selfishhly
  • selfishlly
  • selfishlyy
  • selfishyl
  • selfislhy
  • selfisshly
  • selfsihly
  • selifshly
  • sellfishly
  • slefishly
  • sselfishly

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

eslfishly2seflishly2selffishly1selfihsly2selfishhly1selfishlly1selfishlyy1selfishyl2
Edit distance from "selfishly"

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 "selfishly"?
"selfishly" is spelled S-E-L-F-I-S-H-L-Y.
What does "selfishly" mean?
As an adverb, "selfishly" means: In a selfish manner; with regard to private interest only or chiefly.
What words are commonly confused with "selfishly"?
"selfishly" is commonly confused with "selfish". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
What is the origin of the word "selfishly"?
From selfish + -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 "selfishly", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Shawshank#45,082sacrilege#45,064Roseville#45,057revamping#45,050

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (15 here; floor ≥5).

reparation15 variantssweetwater15 variantsunabridged15 variantsunbearably15 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list