clothe

/ˈkləʊð/

//ˈkləʊð// verb

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

"clothe" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“clothe” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #39,249 in English word frequency and used as a verb.

#39,249
frequency rank, English
6
letters
9
tracked misspellings
10
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - To adorn or cover with clothing; to dress; to supply clothes or clothing.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

clothe vs cote
67% similar
clothe vs clove
67% similar
clothe vs cloths
83% similar

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

Key facts for clothe
PropertyValue
Headwordclothe
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ˈkləʊð/
Letters6
Frequency rank#39,249
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs10
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “clothe” 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). clothe 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 clothe is 6 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈkləʊð/. Corpus data places it at rank #39,249 in overall English 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 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for clothe, with forms such as "cclothe", "cllothe", and "clohte". 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 10 confusable-pair relationships, "cote", "clove", "cloths", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English clothen, from Old English *clāþian (“to clothe”), from Proto-Germanic *klaiþōną (“to clothe”), from Proto-Indo-European *gley- (“to adhere to, stick”). Cognate with Dutch kleden, German kleiden, Swedish kläda, after apocope klä. See also… The correct English form is clothe, spelled C-L-O-T-H-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    To adorn or cover with clothing; to dress; to supply clothes or clothing.
  2. 2
    To cover or invest, as if with a garment.

Etymology

From Middle English clothen, from Old English *clāþian (“to clothe”), from Proto-Germanic *klaiþōną (“to clothe”), from Proto-Indo-European *gley- (“to adhere to, stick”). Cognate with Dutch kleden, German kleiden, Swedish kläda, after apocope klä. See also cloth, clad.

Synonyms

dightdonput onaccouteraddressapparelarrayattirebeclotheclothegarmentdressenrobeequipinvestrobeslip onvest

Antonyms

undress

This word in other languages

vestir(Español)vêtir(Français)bekleiden(Deutsch)carregar(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: cclothe,cllothe,clohte,cloteh,clothhe,clotthe,cltohe,colthe,lcothe

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of clothe - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

cclothe1cllothe1clohte2cloteh2clothhe1clotthe1cltohe2colthe2
Edit distance from "clothe"

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 "clothe"?
"clothe" is spelled C-L-O-T-H-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈkləʊð/.
What does "clothe" mean?
As a verb, "clothe" means: To adorn or cover with clothing; to dress; to supply clothes or clothing.
What words are commonly confused with "clothe"?
"clothe" is commonly confused with "cote", "clove", "cloths". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "clothe"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "clothe" is /ˈkləʊð/. 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 "clothe"?
From Middle English clothen, from Old English *clāþian (“to clothe”), from Proto-Germanic *klaiþōną (“to clothe”), from Proto-Indo-European *gley- (“to adhere to, stick”). Cognate with Dutch kleden, German kleiden, Swedish kläda, after apocope klä... 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 “clothe”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is C-L-O-T-H-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈkləʊð/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “cote” - see the side-by-side comparison. clothe vs cote
  • 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