deary me

/ˌdɪəɹiˈmiː/

//ˌdɪəɹiˈmiː// intj

"deary-me" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“deary me” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as an interjection. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
8
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Alternative form of dear me.

Corpus desk

Index EN-deary-me · deary me · English

deary me · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "D" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

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.

Key facts for deary me
PropertyValue
Headworddeary me
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechInterjection
IPA/ˌdɪəɹiˈmiː/
Letters8
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “deary me” in English

deary mefalls outside the top-100,000 ranked English words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

deary me is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as aninterjection, transcribed /ˌdɪəɹiˈmiː/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Alternative form of dear me.".

No misspelling variants are generated for deary me in our index, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

This entry's etymology isn't recorded, so any spelling logic here comes from how the word's sounds map to letters, not a documented origin story. The correct English form is deary me, spelled D-E-A-R-Y- -M-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Alternative form of dear me.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. "Dear, deary me," cried my mother, "what a disgrace upon the house! And your poor father sick!"

Synonyms

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "deary me"?
"deary me" is spelled D-E-A-R-Y- -M-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˌdɪəɹiˈmiː/.
What does "deary me" mean?
As an interjection, "deary me" means: Alternative form of dear me.
How do you pronounce "deary me"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "deary me" is /ˌdɪəɹiˈmiː/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "deary me" come from?
"deary me" is a English word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list