silver lining
"silver-lining" is a 12-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“silver lining” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 13
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A favorable aspect or prospect of a mostly unfavorable event or situation.
Corpus desk
Index EN-silver-lining · silver lining · English
silver lining · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-MEGA 13 letters
- VOW-4 4 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "S" thin
- PHOTO-UNK Peer pending
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.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | silver lining |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| Letters | 13 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “silver lining” in English
Rare enough to double-check
silver lining is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "A favorable aspect or prospect of a mostly unfavorable event or situation.".
No generated misspelling entries exist for silver lining in our index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.
Etymologically, the entry records: Originating in John Milton's poem Comus; see the quotation from 1634. The proverb every cloud has a silver lining is an allusion to the relevant passage. The correct English form is silver lining, spelled S-I-L-V-E-R- -L-I-N-I-N-G.
Definition
- 1A favorable aspect or prospect of a mostly unfavorable event or situation.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how silver lining appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
Was I deceived, or did a sable cloud / Turn forth her silver lining on the night? / I did not err: there does a sable cloud / Turn forth her silver lining on the night, / And casts a gleam over this tufted grove.
The only silver lining for businesses and local residents was that there was at least an end in sight, and that the new station, once built, would enhance the area and provide improved east-west access for pedestrians.
Etymology
Originating in John Milton's poem Comus; see the quotation from 1634. The proverb every cloud has a silver lining is an allusion to the relevant passage.
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.