warily

adv

"warily" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“warily” is an uncommon English word, ranked #60,558 in English word frequency and used as an adverb.

#60,558
frequency rank, English
6
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - In a careful and guarded manner, especially to avoid potential danger or harm.

Key facts for warily
PropertyValue
Headwordwarily
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdverb
Letters6
Frequency rank#60,558
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “warily” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). warily lands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for warily is 6 letters long, classified as an adverb. Corpus data places it at rank #60,558 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for warily, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. 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: From wary + -ly. The correct English form is warily, spelled W-A-R-I-L-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    In a careful and guarded manner, especially to avoid potential danger or harm.
  2. 2
    Without trust; in a manner showing a lack of trust.

Etymology

From wary + -ly.

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 "warily"?
"warily" is spelled W-A-R-I-L-Y.
What does "warily" mean?
As an adverb, "warily" means: In a careful and guarded manner, especially to avoid potential danger or harm.
What is the origin of the word "warily"?
From wary + -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.

Using “warily”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is W-A-R-I-L-Y - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list