sisterly

/ˈsɪstəli/

//ˈsɪstəli// adj

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

"sisterly" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“sisterly” is uncommon English (frequency #64,714 among 6,566 “S” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#64,714
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Of or characteristic of sisters.

Corpus desk

Index EN-sisterly · sisterly · English

sisterly · rank #64,714 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #64,714
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH skelly

Nearest frequency peer: skelly (+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.

Long-tail ranks near “sisterly”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “sisterly” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for sisterly
PropertyValue
Headwordsisterly
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈsɪstəli/
Letters8
Frequency rank#64,714
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “sisterly” in English

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).sisterlyfalls in this rarity band:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “skelly” (#64,715), “SKS” (#64,716), “sinew” (#64,711). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “sisterly” is #64,714. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

sisterly is uncommon English at frequency #64,714 among 6,566 “S” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed /ˈsɪstəli/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Of or characteristic of sisters.".

sisterly has no tracked misspelling variants, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. Our dataset records no confusable match here, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

Etymologically, the entry records: From sister + -ly (adjectival suffix). The correct English form is sisterly, spelled S-I-S-T-E-R-L-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    Of or characteristic of sisters.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. Burton designed both Middleton sisters' dresses in white, so that when Pippa picked up Kate's train in the abbey, the two of them were united, visually, in a display of sisterly togetherness.

Etymology

From sister + -ly (adjectival suffix).

This word in other languages

sororal(Français)schwesterlich(Deutsch)

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 "sisterly"?
"sisterly" is spelled S-I-S-T-E-R-L-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈsɪstəli/.
What does "sisterly" mean?
As an adjective, "sisterly" means: Of or characteristic of sisters.
How do you pronounce "sisterly"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "sisterly" is /ˈsɪstəli/. 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 "sisterly"?
From sister + -ly (adjectival suffix). 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 "sisterly", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

sportive#64,729scowling#64,691Stauffer#64,737Tauranga#64,760

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list