steeply

adv

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

"steeply" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“steeply” has 11 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #31,777. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#31,777
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
11
tracked misspellings
9
confusable pairs

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

Corpus desk

Index EN-steeply · steeply · English

steeply · rank #31,777 · 11 variants · 9 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #31,777
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 9 pairs
  • VAR-MID 11 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH Stearns

Nearest frequency peer: Stearns (-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 “steeply”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “steeply” 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).

steeply vs sweetly
71% similar
steeply vs sternly
71% similar
steeply vs steel
71% similar

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

Key facts for steeply
PropertyValue
Headwordsteeply
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdverb
Letters7
Frequency rank#31,777
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs9
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “steeply”

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).steeplylands 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 “Stearns” (#31,776), “stingray” (#31,778), “Stonehenge” (#31,779). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “steeply” is #31,777. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 11 spelling variants around steeply, anadverb. Corpus frequency is #31,777 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Dominant gloss: "In a steep manner.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for steeply, with forms such as "seteply", "ssteeply", and "steelpy". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 9 confusable-pair relationships, "sweetly", "sternly", "steel", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From steep + -ly. The correct English form is steeply, spelled S-T-E-E-P-L-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    In a steep manner.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The two characteristic Italian villages which slumber on its banks, and the equally Italian palazzo whose terraced gardens descend steeply to the lake, hardly break the stillness and even the solitariness of the scene.
  2. The descent continues, still more steeply to Dundee (Tay Bridge), and approaching from the bridge itself this sharp descent gives the curious appearance that the station is below the level of the firth.

Etymology

From steep + -ly.

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • seteply
  • ssteeply
  • steelpy
  • steeplly
  • steeplyy
  • steepply
  • steepyl
  • stepely
  • steply
  • stteeply
  • tseeply

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

seteply2ssteeply1steelpy2steeplly1steeplyy1steepply1steepyl2stepely2
Edit distance from "steeply"

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 "steeply"?
"steeply" is spelled S-T-E-E-P-L-Y.
What does "steeply" mean?
As an adverb, "steeply" means: In a steep manner.
What words are commonly confused with "steeply"?
"steeply" is commonly confused with "sweetly", "sternly", "steel". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
What is the origin of the word "steeply"?
From steep + -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 "steeply", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Stearns#31,776somatic#31,772sniping#31,769smartly#31,766

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (11 here; floor ≥5).

Sigmund11 variantsThurman11 variantsSardinia11 variantsabysmal11 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list