trill

/tɹɪl/

//tɹɪl// noun

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

"trill" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“trill” has 6 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #40,489. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#40,489
frequency rank, English
3,151
“T” headwords
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A rapid alternation between an indicated note and the one above it as an ornament; in musical notation usually indicated with the letters tr written above the staff.

Corpus desk

Index EN-trill · trill · English

trill · rank #40,489 · 6 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #40,489
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 6 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,151
  • PHOTO-FINISH tribulation

Nearest frequency peer: tribulation (-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 “trill”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “trill” 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).

trill vs trip
60% similar
trill vs trio
60% similar
trill vs trim
60% similar

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

Key facts for trill
PropertyValue
Headwordtrill
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/tɹɪl/
Letters5
Frequency rank#40,489
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “trill”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).trilllands 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 “tribulation” (#40,488), “twisty” (#40,490), “tye” (#40,491). Among 3,151 “T” headwords, “trill” is #40,489. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 6 spelling variants around trill (IPA /tɹɪl/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #40,489 among 3,151 “T” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for trill, with forms such as "rtill", "tirll", and "tril". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "trip", "trio", "trim", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English trillen, from Italian trillo, trillare. Compare German trillern, Norwegian trille, Swedish trilla. The correct English form is trill, spelled T-R-I-L-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    A rapid alternation between an indicated note and the one above it as an ornament; in musical notation usually indicated with the letters tr written above the staff.
  2. 2
    A type of consonantal sound that is produced by vibrations of the tongue against the place of articulation: for example, Spanish ⟨rr⟩, /r/.
  3. 3
    A tremulous high-pitched vocal sound produced by cats.

Etymology

From Middle English trillen, from Italian trillo, trillare. Compare German trillern, Norwegian trille, Swedish trilla.

Synonyms

chirlchirrquavertrillwarblewobble

This word in other languages

trino(Español)trille(Français)Triller(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • rtill
  • tirll
  • tril
  • trlil
  • trrill
  • ttrill

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of trill - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

rtill2tirll2tril1trlil2trrill1ttrill1
Edit distance from "trill"

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 "trill"?
"trill" is spelled T-R-I-L-L. The IPA pronunciation is /tɹɪl/.
What does "trill" mean?
As a noun, "trill" means: A rapid alternation between an indicated note and the one above it as an ornament; in musical notation usually indicated with the letters tr written above the staff.
What words are commonly confused with "trill"?
"trill" is commonly confused with "trip", "trio", "trim". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "trill"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "trill" is /tɹɪl/. 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 "trill"?
From Middle English trillen, from Italian trillo, trillare. Compare German trillern, Norwegian trille, Swedish trilla. 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 "trill", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

unmet#40,496Toews#40,478strep#40,466stipe#40,462

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (6 here; floor ≥5).

xing6 variantsseñor6 variantsagora6 variantsReade6 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list