curfew

/ˈkɜː.fjuː/

//ˈkɜː.fjuː// noun

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

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

The verdict

“curfew” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #17,811. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#17,811
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
14
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Any regulation requiring people to be off the streets and in their homes by a certain time.

Corpus desk

Index EN-curfew · curfew · English

curfew · rank #17,811 · 9 variants · 14 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #17,811
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 14 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH Crowley

Nearest frequency peer: Crowley (-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 “curfew”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “curfew” 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).

curfew vs curve
67% similar
curfew vs curse
67% similar
curfew vs curie
67% similar

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

Key facts for curfew
PropertyValue
Headwordcurfew
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈkɜː.fjuː/
Letters6
Frequency rank#17,811
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs14
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “curfew”

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).curfewlands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “Crowley” (#17,810), “crore” (#17,809), “Daytona” (#17,813). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “curfew” is #17,811. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around curfew (IPA /ˈkɜː.fjuː/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #17,811 among 5,599 “C” headwords. Wiktionary lists 6 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for curfew, with forms such as "ccurfew", "crufew", and "cufrew". 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 14 confusable-pair relationships, "curve", "curse", "curie", 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 curfu, from Old French cuevre-fu (French couvre-feu), from the imperative of covrir (“to cover”) + fu (“fire”). Compare kerchief. The correct English form is curfew, spelled C-U-R-F-E-W.

Definition

  1. 1
    Any regulation requiring people to be off the streets and in their homes by a certain time.
  2. 2
    The time when such restriction begins.
  3. 3
    A signal indicating this time.
  4. 4
    A fireplace accessory designed to bank a fire by completely covering the embers.
  5. 5
    A regulation in feudal Europe by which fires had to be covered up or put out at a certain fixed time in the evening, marked by the ringing of an evening bell.
  6. 6
    The evening bell, which continued to be rung in many towns after the regulation itself became obsolete.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Curfews have been curbing / The end of liberty
  2. Localities across New Jersey imposed curfews to prevent looting. In Monmouth, Ocean and other counties, people waited for hours for gasoline at the few stations that had electricity. Supermarket shelves were stripped bare.

Etymology

From Middle English curfu, from Old French cuevre-fu (French couvre-feu), from the imperative of covrir (“to cover”) + fu (“fire”). Compare kerchief.

This word in other languages

toque de queda(Español)couvre-feu(Français)Ausgangssperre(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ccurfew
  • crufew
  • cufrew
  • curefw
  • curfeww
  • curffew
  • curfwe
  • currfew
  • ucrfew

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of curfew - 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.

ccurfew1crufew2cufrew2curefw2curfeww1curffew1curfwe2currfew1
Edit distance from "curfew"

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 "curfew"?
"curfew" is spelled C-U-R-F-E-W. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈkɜː.fjuː/.
What does "curfew" mean?
As a noun, "curfew" means: Any regulation requiring people to be off the streets and in their homes by a certain time.
What words are commonly confused with "curfew"?
"curfew" is commonly confused with "curve", "curse", "curie". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "curfew"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "curfew" is /ˈkɜː.fjuː/. 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 "curfew"?
From Middle English curfu, from Old French cuevre-fu (French couvre-feu), from the imperative of covrir (“to cover”) + fu (“fire”). Compare kerchief. 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 "curfew", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

crispy#17,807douche#17,825cobalt#17,796coasts#17,795

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (9 here; floor ≥5).

cropped9 variantscigars9 variantsenlist9 variantsbrides9 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list