Dufferin

/ˈdʌ.fə.ɹɪn/

//ˈdʌ.fə.ɹɪn// name

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

"dufferin" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“Dufferin” is uncommon English (frequency #70,619 among 3,470 “D” headwords), classed as a proper noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#70,619
frequency rank, English
3,470
“D” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A place in Canada:

Corpus desk

Index EN-dufferin · Dufferin · English

Dufferin · rank #70,619 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #70,619
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,470
  • PHOTO-FINISH DS9

Nearest frequency peer: DS9 (-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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “Dufferin”

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

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “Dufferin” 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
Key facts for Dufferin
PropertyValue
HeadwordDufferin
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechProper noun
IPA/ˈdʌ.fə.ɹɪn/
Letters8
Frequency rank#70,619
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “Dufferin” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).Dufferinlands here:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “DS9” (#70,618), “dryland” (#70,617), “Dupuis” (#70,621). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

Dufferin is uncommon English at frequency #70,619 among 3,470 “D” headwords, classed as aproper noun, transcribed /ˈdʌ.fə.ɹɪn/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.

Dufferin has no tracked misspelling variants, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

Etymologically, the entry records: The New Brunswick parish is named after British politician Frederick Hamilton-Temple-Blackwood, 1st Marquess of Dufferin and Ava (1826 - 1902), as is the rural municipality in Manitoba, and probably the other places in Canada. The correct English form is Dufferin, spelled D-U-F-F-E-R-I-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    A place in Canada:
  2. 2
    A place in Canada:
  3. 3
    A place in Canada:
  4. 4
    A place in Canada:

Etymology

The New Brunswick parish is named after British politician Frederick Hamilton-Temple-Blackwood, 1st Marquess of Dufferin and Ava (1826 - 1902), as is the rural municipality in Manitoba, and probably the other places in Canada.

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 "Dufferin"?
"Dufferin" is spelled D-U-F-F-E-R-I-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈdʌ.fə.ɹɪn/.
What does "Dufferin" mean?
As a proper noun, "Dufferin" means: A place in Canada:
How do you pronounce "Dufferin"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Dufferin" is /ˈdʌ.fə.ɹɪn/. 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 "Dufferin"?
The New Brunswick parish is named after British politician Frederick Hamilton-Temple-Blackwood, 1st Marquess of Dufferin and Ava (1826 - 1902), as is the rural municipality in Manitoba, and probably the other places in Canada. 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 "Dufferin", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Earnshaw#70,625Edinburg#70,627ennobled#70,639erythema#70,645

What to do next

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

  • Usage frequency rank #70,619 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more English words in the "D" letter cohort. D–Z browse
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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