dig

/dɪɡ/

//dɪɡ// verb

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

"dig" is a 3-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“dig” sits in 20 confusable pairs (corpus #4,940) as a verb. The look-alike neighbours are the real trap.

#4,940
frequency rank, English
3,470
“D” headwords
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To move hard-packed earth out of the way, especially downward to make a hole with a shovel. Or to drill, or the like, through rocks, roads, or the like. More generally, to make any similar hole by ...

Corpus desk

Index EN-dig · dig · English

dig · rank #4,940 · 0 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #4,940
  • LEN-MID 3 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,470
  • PHOTO-FINISH developers

Nearest frequency peer: developers (-2 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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “dig”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “dig” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

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).

dig vs do
33% similar
dig vs Dr
0% similar
dig vs DJ
0% similar

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

Key facts for dig
PropertyValue
Headworddig
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/dɪɡ/
Letters3
Frequency rank#4,940
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “dig” sits in English frequency

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).dig lands 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. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Easy to mix with look-alikes

The spelling risk for dig is neighbouring look-alikes ("do", "Dr", …), not just typos; it is averb pronounced /dɪɡ/. Frequency #4,940 among 3,470 “D” headwords. 7 recorded senses keep meaning in play.

Zero misspellings are on record for dig in our index, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "do", "Dr", "DJ", 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 diggen (“to dig”, 13th c.), an alteration of dīken, from Old English dīcian (“to dig a ditch, mound up earth”), from Proto-West Germanic *dīkōn, which see for cognates. This verb is denominal from Proto-Germanic *dīkaz (“pool, puddle; dy… The correct English form is dig, spelled D-I-G.

Definition

  1. 1
    To move hard-packed earth out of the way, especially downward to make a hole with a shovel. Or to drill, or the like, through rocks, roads, or the like. More generally, to make any similar hole by moving material out of the way.
  2. 2
    To get by digging; to take from the ground; often with up.
  3. 3
    To take ore from its bed, in distinction from making excavations in search of ore.
  4. 4
    To work like a digger; to study ploddingly and laboriously.
  5. 5
    To investigate, to research, often followed by out or up.
  6. 6
    To thrust; to poke.
  7. 7
    To defend against an attack hit by the opposing team by successfully passing the ball

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. They dug an eight-foot ditch along the side of the road.
  2. In the wintertime, heavy truck tires dig into the road, forming potholes.

Etymology

From Middle English diggen (“to dig”, 13th c.), an alteration of dīken, from Old English dīcian (“to dig a ditch, mound up earth”), from Proto-West Germanic *dīkōn, which see for cognates. This verb is denominal from Proto-Germanic *dīkaz (“pool, puddle; dyke, ditch”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰeygʷ- (“to stab, dig”). The form with g may have been influenced by Old French *diguer, a variant of dikier, itself from the West Germanic verb above. French forms with g are attested only in the 15th c., thus 200 years later than in English. On the other hand, French has according forms also for the underlying noun (cf. digue) and the phonetic development is more plausible in French than in English.

This word in other languages

excavar(Español)creuser(Français)graben(Deutsch)cavar(Português)

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.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of September 3, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "dig"?
"dig" is spelled D-I-G. The IPA pronunciation is /dɪɡ/.
What does "dig" mean?
As a verb, "dig" means: To move hard-packed earth out of the way, especially downward to make a hole with a shovel. Or to drill, or the like, through rocks, roads, or the like. More generally, to make any similar hole by ...
What words are commonly confused with "dig"?
"dig" is commonly confused with "do", "Dr", "DJ". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "dig"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "dig" is /dɪɡ/. 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 "dig"?
From Middle English diggen (“to dig”, 13th c.), an alteration of dīken, from Old English dīcian (“to dig a ditch, mound up earth”), from Proto-West Germanic *dīkōn, which see for cognates. This verb is denominal from Proto-Germanic *dīkaz (“pool, ... 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 "dig", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 3 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

GOP#4,949bin#4,920Ron#4,978sue#4,985

What to do next

You've looked up "dig". Here's where to go from here.

  • "dig" maps to 20 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "do". View pair
  • Usage frequency rank #4,940 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more English words in the "D" letter cohort. D–Z browse
  • PlainSpell rotates a curated Word of the Day from the English corpus, a passive way to discover vocabulary. Word of the Day

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list