early

/ˈɜː.li/

//ˈɜː.li// adv

The verdict

“early” is a moderately-common Spanish word, ranked #26,014 in Spanish word frequency and used as an adverb.

#26,014
frequency rank, Spanish
5
letters
7
tracked misspellings
4
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Pronto.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

early vs easy
60% similar
early vs Emily
40% similar
early vs earth
60% similar

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

Key facts for early
PropertyValue
Headwordearly
LanguageSpanish
Part of speechAdverb
IPA/ˈɜː.li/
Letters5
Frequency rank#26,014
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs4
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “early” sits in Spanish 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). early 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 Spanish entry for early is 5 letters long, classified as an adverb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈɜː.li/. Corpus data places it at rank #26,014 in overall Spanish 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.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for early, with forms such as "aerly", "ealry", and "earlly". 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 4 confusable-pair relationships, "easy", "Emily", "earth", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

This headword's origin isn't recorded in our source data, so any spelling logic here comes from how the word's sounds map to letters, not a documented origin story. The correct Spanish form is early, spelled E-A-R-L-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    Pronto.
  2. 2
    En los inicios, al principio.

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: aerly,ealry,earlly,earlyy,earrly,earyl,eraly

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of early - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

aerly2ealry2earlly1earlyy1earrly1earyl2eraly2
Edit distance from "early"

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 Spanish corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "early"?
"early" is spelled E-A-R-L-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɜː.li/.
What does "early" mean?
As an adverb, "early" means: Pronto.
What words are commonly confused with "early"?
"early" is commonly confused with "easy", "Emily", "earth". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "early"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "early" is /ˈɜː.li/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "early" come from?
"early" is a Spanish word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
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 “early”

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

  • The one correct Spanish spelling is E-A-R-L-Y - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈɜː.li/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “easy” - see the side-by-side comparison. early vs easy
  • Browse more Spanish words and confusable pairs in the same reference. Spanish 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