clew
/kluː/
"clew" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“clew” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 4
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A roughly spherical mass or body.
Corpus desk
Index EN-clew · clew · English
clew · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-MID 4 letters
- VOW-1 1 vowel
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "C" 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 | clew |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /kluː/ |
| Letters | 4 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “clew” in English
Rare enough to double-check
clew is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed /kluː/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 7 senses are on record.
clew has no tracked misspelling variants, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English clewe, from Old English cleowen, cliewen, cliwen (“sphere, ball, skein; ball of thread or yarn; mass, group”), from Proto-Germanic *kliuwiną, *klewô (“ball, bale”), from Proto-Indo-European *glew- (“to conglomerate, gather into a mass; c… The correct English form is clew, spelled C-L-E-W.
Definition
- 1A roughly spherical mass or body.
- 2A ball of thread or yarn.
- 3Yarn or thread as used to guide one's way through a maze or labyrinth; a guide, a clue.
- 4The lower corner(s) of a sail to which a sheet is attached for trimming the sail (adjusting its position relative to the wind); the metal loop or cringle in the corner of the sail, to which the sheet is attached. (on a triangular sail) The trailing corner relative to the wind direction.
- 5The sheets so attached to a sail.
- 6The cords suspending a hammock.
- 7Obsolete spelling of clue.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how clew appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
If the whole troupe be diuided into many clewes, or round bunches, you need not then doubt but that there are many kings.
Both theſe creatures [the "ai" (aye-aye?) and "unan"], by forming themſelves in a clew, have often more the appearance of excreſcences in the bark, than that of animals.
Etymology
From Middle English clewe, from Old English cleowen, cliewen, cliwen (“sphere, ball, skein; ball of thread or yarn; mass, group”), from Proto-Germanic *kliuwiną, *klewô (“ball, bale”), from Proto-Indo-European *glew- (“to conglomerate, gather into a mass; clump, ball, bale”). Akin to Old English clǣġ (“clay”). Doublet of knawel.
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.