bothy

/ˈbɒθi/

//ˈbɒθi// noun

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

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

The verdict

“bothy” is uncommon English (frequency #88,140 among 4,121 “B” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#88,140
frequency rank, English
4,121
“B” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A small cottage or hut; specifically (Scotland), one often left unlocked for communal use in a remote, often mountainous, area by hikers, labourers, etc.

Corpus desk

Index EN-bothy · bothy · English

bothy · rank #88,140 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #88,140
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,121
  • PHOTO-FINISH Botelho

Nearest frequency peer: Botelho (-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.

Long-tail ranks near “bothy”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “bothy” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for bothy
PropertyValue
Headwordbothy
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈbɒθi/
Letters5
Frequency rank#88,140
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “bothy” in English

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).bothyfalls in this rarity band:

#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. Rare peers in the same band: “Botelho” (#88,139), “boudin” (#88,141), “Borgen” (#88,138). Among 4,121 “B” headwords, “bothy” is #88,140. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

bothy is uncommon English at frequency #88,140 among 4,121 “B” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈbɒθi/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for bothy, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: Probably from booth + -y (diminutive suffix). Booth is ultimately derived from Proto-Germanic *bōþō (“building; dwelling; hut”), from *būaną (“to dwell, reside”), possibly from Proto-Indo-European *bʰuH- (“to be”). The short vowel /ɒ/, /ɑ/, etc., in the fir… The correct English form is bothy, spelled B-O-T-H-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    A small cottage or hut; specifically (Scotland), one often left unlocked for communal use in a remote, often mountainous, area by hikers, labourers, etc.
  2. 2
    A building for workers to rest in.
  3. 3
    A building on a farm, sometimes with just one room, for (usually unmarried male) farmworkers or other labourers to live in.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how bothy appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. Angus painted in the most alarming colours the roads, or rather wild tracts, by which it would be necessary for him to travel into Argyleshire, and the wretched huts or bathies where he would be condemned to pass the night, and where no forage could be procured for the horse, unless he could eat the stumps of old heather.
  2. But civilization had changed that completely. Not one criminal in a thousand now fled to the Highlands or to Wales for refuge. A man demanded the means of food and shelter in his retreat nowadays, and a deserted bothy or a cave on the hillside was out of date.

Etymology

Probably from booth + -y (diminutive suffix). Booth is ultimately derived from Proto-Germanic *bōþō (“building; dwelling; hut”), from *būaną (“to dwell, reside”), possibly from Proto-Indo-European *bʰuH- (“to be”). The short vowel /ɒ/, /ɑ/, etc., in the first syllable instead of the long vowel /uː/ in booth may be due to the influence of Irish both and Scottish Gaelic both (“booth, hut”), which have the same etymology as booth.

This word in other languages

Schutzhütte(Deutsch)

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 "bothy"?
"bothy" is spelled B-O-T-H-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈbɒθi/.
What does "bothy" mean?
As a noun, "bothy" means: A small cottage or hut; specifically (Scotland), one often left unlocked for communal use in a remote, often mountainous, area by hikers, labourers, etc.
How do you pronounce "bothy"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "bothy" is /ˈbɒθi/. 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 "bothy"?
Probably from booth + -y (diminutive suffix). Booth is ultimately derived from Proto-Germanic *bōþō (“building; dwelling; hut”), from *būaną (“to dwell, reside”), possibly from Proto-Indo-European *bʰuH- (“to be”). The short vowel /ɒ/, /ɑ/, etc., ... 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 "bothy", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Bijan#88,123burra#88,161Cagle#88,168Benno#88,110

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list