creel

/kɹiːl/

//kɹiːl// noun

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

The verdict

“creel” is uncommon English (frequency #59,988 among 5,599 “C” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#59,988
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A woven basket, especially a wicker basket.

Corpus desk

Index EN-creel · creel · English

creel · rank #59,988 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #59,988
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH countermeasure

Nearest frequency peer: countermeasure (-3 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 “creel”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for creel
PropertyValue
Headwordcreel
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/kɹiːl/
Letters5
Frequency rank#59,988
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “creel” in English

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).creelfalls in this rarity band:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “countermeasure” (#59,985), “Cueto” (#59,991), “coulomb” (#59,984). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “creel” is #59,988. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

creel is uncommon English at frequency #59,988 among 5,599 “C” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /kɹiːl/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for creel, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: Inherited from Northern Middle English crele, possibly from an Old French root *creille, variant of greille (compare French grille), from Latin crāticula. The correct English form is creel, spelled C-R-E-E-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    A woven basket, especially a wicker basket.
  2. 2
    A woven basket, especially a wicker basket.
  3. 3
    A woven basket, especially a wicker basket.
  4. 4
    A bar or set of bars with skewers for holding paying-off bobbins, as in the roving machine, throstle, and mule.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Return with a creel of trout for supper.
  2. Her great creel forehead-slung, she wanders nigh, Easing the heavy strap with gnarled, brown fingers

Etymology

Inherited from Northern Middle English crele, possibly from an Old French root *creille, variant of greille (compare French grille), from Latin crāticula.

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); 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 "creel"?
"creel" is spelled C-R-E-E-L. The IPA pronunciation is /kɹiːl/.
What does "creel" mean?
As a noun, "creel" means: A woven basket, especially a wicker basket.
How do you pronounce "creel"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "creel" is /kɹiːl/. 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 "creel"?
Inherited from Northern Middle English crele, possibly from an Old French root *creille, variant of greille (compare French grille), from Latin crāticula. 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 "creel", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list