dearth

/dɜːθ/

//dɜːθ// noun

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

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

The verdict

“dearth” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #31,948. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#31,948
frequency rank, English
3,470
“D” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
11
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A period or condition when food is rare and hence expensive; famine.

Corpus desk

Index EN-dearth · dearth · English

dearth · rank #31,948 · 9 variants · 11 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #31,948
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 11 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,470
  • PHOTO-FINISH DDOS

Nearest frequency peer: DDOS (-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 “dearth”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “dearth” 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).

dearth vs death
83% similar
dearth vs depth
67% similar
dearth vs deaths
67% similar

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

Key facts for dearth
PropertyValue
Headworddearth
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/dɜːθ/
Letters6
Frequency rank#31,948
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs11
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “dearth”

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).dearthlands here:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “DDOS” (#31,947), “Delilah” (#31,949), “Dario” (#31,946). Among 3,470 “D” headwords, “dearth” is #31,948. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around dearth (IPA /dɜːθ/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #31,948 among 3,470 “D” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for dearth, with forms such as "daerth", "ddearth", and "dearht". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 11 confusable-pair relationships, "death", "depth", "deaths", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: First attested at least as early as the late 1300s, and appearing in Tyndale’s Pentateuch (1530) as well as the Coverdale Bible (1535). From Middle English derth, derthe, derþe, probably from Old English *dīerþ, *dīerþu, from Proto-West Germanic *diuriþu, f… The correct English form is dearth, spelled D-E-A-R-T-H.

Definition

  1. 1
    A period or condition when food is rare and hence expensive; famine.
  2. 2
    Scarcity; a lack or short supply.
  3. 3
    Dearness; the quality of being rare or costly.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. I promise you, the effects he writes of succeed unhappily: as of unnaturalness between the child and the parent; death, dearth, dissolutions of ancient amities; divisions in state, menaces and maledictions against king and nobles; needless diffidences, banishment of friends, dissipation of cohorts, nuptial breaches, and I know not what.
  2. And faine would hee, if he could tell how, haue plentie in his own fields, and scarcity in other mens; superfluitie at home, and dearth abroade, that hee might sell his corne at the dearer rate

Etymology

First attested at least as early as the late 1300s, and appearing in Tyndale’s Pentateuch (1530) as well as the Coverdale Bible (1535). From Middle English derth, derthe, derþe, probably from Old English *dīerþ, *dīerþu, from Proto-West Germanic *diuriþu, from Proto-Germanic *diuriþō (“costliness, preciousness, honour”); corresponding to dear + -th (abstract nominal suffix). Cognate with Old Saxon diuriða (“glory, honour; preciousness”), West Frisian djoerte (“love, dearness, value, worth”), Dutch duurte (“dearness; scarcity, dearth”), Icelandic dýrð (“honour, glory”).

Synonyms

famineshortagelackpaucityscarcity

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • daerth
  • ddearth
  • dearht
  • dearrth
  • dearthh
  • deartth
  • deatrh
  • derath
  • edarth

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

daerth2ddearth1dearht2dearrth1dearthh1deartth1deatrh2derath2
Edit distance from "dearth"

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 "dearth"?
"dearth" is spelled D-E-A-R-T-H. The IPA pronunciation is /dɜːθ/.
What does "dearth" mean?
As a noun, "dearth" means: A period or condition when food is rare and hence expensive; famine.
What words are commonly confused with "dearth"?
"dearth" is commonly confused with "death", "depth", "deaths". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "dearth"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "dearth" is /dɜːθ/. 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 "dearth"?
First attested at least as early as the late 1300s, and appearing in Tyndale’s Pentateuch (1530) as well as the Coverdale Bible (1535). From Middle English derth, derthe, derþe, probably from Old English *dīerþ, *dīerþu, from Proto-West Germanic *... 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 "dearth", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

dangle#31,944coulda#31,939Dryden#31,959commie#31,924

Similar misspelling depth

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

Daniela9 variantscognac9 variantsclapper9 variantschokes9 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list