cully

/ˈkʌli/

//ˈkʌli// noun

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

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

The verdict

“cully” is uncommon English (frequency #87,179 among 5,599 “C” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#87,179
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A person who is easily tricked or imposed on; a dupe, a gullible person.

Corpus desk

Index EN-cully · cully · English

cully · rank #87,179 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #87,179
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH cubit

Nearest frequency peer: cubit (-4 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 “cully”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for cully
PropertyValue
Headwordcully
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈkʌli/
Letters5
Frequency rank#87,179
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “cully” in English

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).cullyfalls 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: “cubit” (#87,175), “Cubano” (#87,174), “cryopreservation” (#87,173). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “cully” is #87,179. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

cully is uncommon English at frequency #87,179 among 5,599 “C” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈkʌli/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

No misspelling variants are generated for cully in our index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. Our dataset records no confusable match here, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

Etymologically, the entry records: Uncertain. Short for cullion? Compare Irish cuallaí (“companion”) The correct English form is cully, spelled C-U-L-L-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    A person who is easily tricked or imposed on; a dupe, a gullible person.
  2. 2
    A companion.
  3. 3
    A male client of a prostitute; a john, a gonk.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Yet the rich Cullies may their boaſting ſpare; / They purchaſe but ſophiſticated VVare.
  2. I have learned that […] I am not the first cully whom she has passed upon for a countess.

Etymology

Uncertain. Short for cullion? Compare Irish cuallaí (“companion”)

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 "cully"?
"cully" is spelled C-U-L-L-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈkʌli/.
What does "cully" mean?
As a noun, "cully" means: A person who is easily tricked or imposed on; a dupe, a gullible person.
How do you pronounce "cully"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "cully" is /ˈkʌli/. 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 "cully"?
Uncertain. Short for cullion? Compare Irish cuallaí (“companion”) 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 "cully", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

cubit#87,175Delly#87,198braai#87,095bipod#87,077

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list