dig in

verb

"dig-in" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“dig in” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
6
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To begin eating.

Corpus desk

Index EN-dig-in · dig in · English

dig in · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 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 dig in
PropertyValue
Headworddig in
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
Letters6
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “dig in” in English

dig insits beyond the 100,000 most-frequent English words, in the long tail of technical, archaic, or otherwise rare vocabulary where spelling doubt tends to strike hardest.

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

Rare enough to double-check

dig in is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as averb. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 5 senses are on record.

dig in has no tracked misspelling variants, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. Our dataset records no confusable match here, 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, leaving phoneme-to-grapheme mapping as the best guide to its spelling rather than a borrowing history. The correct English form is dig in, spelled D-I-G- -I-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    To begin eating.
  2. 2
    To engage in a burst of hard work.
  3. 3
    To dig trenches to resist an enemy attack.
  4. 4
    To adopt a resolute state of mind.
  5. 5
    To cover over by digging.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. I wanted to say grace before dinner, but the kids were already digging in.
  2. I've got to dig in for a couple of weeks to secure my promotion.

This word in other languages

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 "dig in"?
"dig in" is spelled D-I-G- -I-N.
What does "dig in" mean?
As a verb, "dig in" means: To begin eating.
What language does "dig in" come from?
"dig in" is a English word. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for this and other words across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German on PlainSpell.
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