by dint of
/baɪ ˈdɪnt ɒv/
"by-dint-of" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“by dint of” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a preposition. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 10
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - By force of; by means of.
Corpus desk
Index EN-by-dint-of · by dint of · English
by dint of · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-MEGA 10 letters
- VOW-3 3 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "B" thin
- PHOTO-UNK Peer pending
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.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | by dint of |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Preposition |
| IPA | /baɪ ˈdɪnt ɒv/ |
| Letters | 10 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “by dint of” in English
Rare enough to double-check
by dint of is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as apreposition, transcribed /baɪ ˈdɪnt ɒv/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.
The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for by dint of, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.
Etymologically, the entry records: From by + dint (“force, power”) + of. The correct English form is by dint of, spelled B-Y- -D-I-N-T- -O-F.
Definition
- 1By force of; by means of.
- 2Because of; by reason of.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how by dint of appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
He succeeded by dint of effort, not talent.
[T]he Scythians perceiuyng they coulde not ouercome them by dint of ſwoorde and warre, changed their fight, & went againſt them with whippes and ſcourges, at the ſight whereof the ſeruant[s] remembring their olde condicion, were ſore abaſhed and ſubmitted them ſelues, takying worthy punyſhment for their offence.
Etymology
From by + dint (“force, power”) + of.
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.