crusty

/ˈkɹʌsti/

//ˈkɹʌsti// adj

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

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

The verdict

“crusty” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #28,503. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#28,503
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
17
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Having a crust, especially a thick one.

Corpus desk

Index EN-crusty · crusty · English

crusty · rank #28,503 · 10 variants · 17 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #28,503
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 17 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH cumin

Nearest frequency peer: cumin (+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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “crusty”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “crusty” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

crusty vs cushy
67% similar
crusty vs crush
67% similar
crusty vs crust
83% similar

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

Key facts for crusty
PropertyValue
Headwordcrusty
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈkɹʌsti/
Letters6
Frequency rank#28,503
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs17
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “crusty”

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).crustylands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “cumin” (#28,504), “cutlery” (#28,505), “cray” (#28,500). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “crusty” is #28,503. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around crusty (IPA /ˈkɹʌsti/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #28,503 among 5,599 “C” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for crusty, with forms such as "ccrusty", "crrusty", and "crsuty". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 17 confusable-pair relationships, "cushy", "crush", "crust", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English, equivalent to crust + -y. The correct English form is crusty, spelled C-R-U-S-T-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    Having a crust, especially a thick one.
  2. 2
    Short-tempered and gruff but, sometimes, with a harmless or benign inner nature.
  3. 3
    Of very low quality; crude visuals or harsh, granular sound.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. No one was there. But there was a cloth spread upon the table that stood against the wall, and a cover was laid for one, with a crusty brown loaf and a bottle of wine beside the plate
  2. However kindly a friend may otherwise be, he soon turns crusty if asked to lend money.

Etymology

From Middle English, equivalent to crust + -y.

This word in other languages

crujiente(Español)Krusten-(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ccrusty
  • crrusty
  • crsuty
  • crussty
  • crustty
  • crustyy
  • crusyt
  • crutsy
  • cursty
  • rcusty

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of crusty - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

ccrusty1crrusty1crsuty2crussty1crustty1crustyy1crusyt2crutsy2
Edit distance from "crusty"

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 "crusty"?
"crusty" is spelled C-R-U-S-T-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈkɹʌsti/.
What does "crusty" mean?
As an adjective, "crusty" means: Having a crust, especially a thick one.
What words are commonly confused with "crusty"?
"crusty" is commonly confused with "cushy", "crush", "crust". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "crusty"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "crusty" is /ˈkɹʌsti/. 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 "crusty"?
From Middle English, equivalent to crust + -y. 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 "crusty", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Delphi#28,511cheery#28,488cervix#28,487ducked#28,524

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (10 here; floor ≥5).

Chrissy10 variantsBeasley10 variantsbaiting10 variantsaggressor10 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list