dewy
/ˈdjuː.i/
"dewy" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“dewy” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #44,738 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.
- #44,738
- frequency rank, English
- 4
- letters
- 6
- tracked misspellings
- 20
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Covered by dew.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | dewy |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | /ˈdjuː.i/ |
| Letters | 4 |
| Frequency rank | #44,738 |
| Misspellings tracked | 6 |
| Confusable pairs | 20 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “dewy” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for dewy is 4 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈdjuː.i/. Corpus data places it at rank #44,738 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 4 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for dewy, with forms such as "ddewy", "dewwy", and "dewyy". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "dw", "dy", "dry", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English dewy, deuhy, from Old English dēawiġ, from Proto-West Germanic *dauwag, *dauwīg, equivalent to dew + -y. The correct English form is dewy, spelled D-E-W-Y.
Definition
- 1Covered by dew.
- 2Having the quality of bearing droplets of water.
- 3Resembling or characteristic of dew.
- 4Fresh and innocent.
Etymology
From Middle English dewy, deuhy, from Old English dēawiġ, from Proto-West Germanic *dauwag, *dauwīg, equivalent to dew + -y.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: ddewy,dewwy,dewyy,deyw,dwey,edwy
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of dewy - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.
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
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Using “dewy”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is D-E-W-Y - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈdjuː.i/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “dw” - see the side-by-side comparison. dewy vs dw
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source
Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.