widely
wide·ly/ˈwaɪdli/adverb
widely is spelled W-I-D-E-L-Y: 6 letters and 2 syllables (wide·ly). It appears 35 times per million words in written English, the 2,785th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adverb, widely means “In a wide manner; across a wide area” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in widely?
| Letters | 6: W-I-D-E-L-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: wide·ly |
| In writing | 35 times per million words; the 2,785th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is widely?
Widely appears 35 times per million words in written English, the 2,785th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce widely?
- /ˈwaɪdli/
Widely has 2 syllables, split wide·ly in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-widely.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with widely?
No other word on PlainSpell ends in the same sounds as widely.
Spelled with the same letters in another order: wieldy.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of widely
- widelier comparative
- more widely comparative
- wideliest superlative
- most widely superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does widely mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adverb
- 1
In a wide manner; across a wide area.
I'm widely travelled.
- 2
Commonly; generally; to a great degree.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Widely in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | largement, généralement, fréquemment, communément , grandement |
| German | breit , entfernt |
| Portuguese | amplamente , distantemente |
| Spanish | comúnmente, generalmente, frecuentemente , extensamente, ampliamente |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does widely come from?
From Middle English wijdly, equivalent to wide + -ly.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).