achy

/ˈeɪ.ki/

//ˈeɪ.ki// adj

"achy" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“achy” is an uncommon English word, ranked #59,843 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.

#59,843
frequency rank, English
4
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - With or suffering from aches; sore.

Key facts for achy
PropertyValue
Headwordachy
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈeɪ.ki/
Letters4
Frequency rank#59,843
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “achy” 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). achy 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 achy is 4 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈeɪ.ki/. Corpus data places it at rank #59,843 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "With or suffering from aches; sore.".

achy has no tracked misspelling variants, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. Our dataset records no confusable match here, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: From ache + -y. The correct English form is achy, spelled A-C-H-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    With or suffering from aches; sore.

Etymology

From ache + -y.

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 "achy"?
"achy" is spelled A-C-H-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈeɪ.ki/.
What does "achy" mean?
As an adjective, "achy" means: With or suffering from aches; sore.
How do you pronounce "achy"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "achy" is /ˈeɪ.ki/. 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 "achy"?
From ache + -y. 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 “achy”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is A-C-H-Y - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈeɪ.ki/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • 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