dyke

/daɪk/

//daɪk// noun

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

"dyke" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“dyke” has 6 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #17,827. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#17,827
frequency rank, English
3,470
“D” headwords
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A long, narrow hollow dug from the ground to serve as a boundary marker.

Corpus desk

Index EN-dyke · dyke · English

dyke · rank #17,827 · 6 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #17,827
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 6 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,470
  • PHOTO-FINISH echoing

Nearest frequency peer: echoing (+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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “dyke”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “dyke” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

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).

dyke vs dykes
80% similar
dyke vs de
50% similar
dyke vs dy
50% similar

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

Key facts for dyke
PropertyValue
Headworddyke
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/daɪk/
Letters4
Frequency rank#17,827
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “dyke”

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “echoing” (#17,828), “douche” (#17,825), “eclectic” (#17,829). Among 3,470 “D” headwords, “dyke” is #17,827. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 6 spelling variants around dyke (IPA /daɪk/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #17,827 among 3,470 “D” headwords. Wiktionary lists 18 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for dyke, with forms such as "ddyke", "dkye", and "dyek". 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, "dykes", "de", "dy", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: A variant of dike, from Northern Middle English dik and dike (“ditch”), from Old Norse díki (“ditch”). Influenced by Middle Dutch dijc (“ditch; dam”) and Middle Low German dīk (“dam”). See also ditch. The correct English form is dyke, spelled D-Y-K-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A long, narrow hollow dug from the ground to serve as a boundary marker.
  2. 2
    A long, narrow hollow dug from the ground to conduct water.
  3. 3
    Any navigable watercourse.
  4. 4
    Any watercourse.
  5. 5
    Any small body of water.
  6. 6
    Any hollow dug into the ground.
  7. 7
    A place to urinate and defecate: an outhouse or lavatory.
  8. 8
    An embankment formed by the spoil from the creation of a ditch.
  9. 9
    A wall, especially (obsolete outside heraldry) a masoned city or castle wall.
  10. 10
    A low embankment or stone wall serving as an enclosure and boundary marker.
  11. 11
    Any fence or hedge.
  12. 12
    An earthwork raised to prevent inundation of low land by the sea or flooding rivers.
  13. 13
    Any impediment, barrier, or difficulty.
  14. 14
    A beaver's dam.
  15. 15
    A jetty; a pier.
  16. 16
    A raised causeway.
  17. 17
    A fissure in a rock stratum filled with intrusive rock; a fault.
  18. 18
    A body of rock (usually igneous) originally filling a fissure but now often rising above the older stratum as it is eroded away.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. In Cubbaroo's dim distant past They built a double dyke. Back to back in the yard it stood An architectural dream in wood.
  2. Inchbrakie gives for Arms, Or, a Dyke (or Wall) Feſsways, broke down in ſome places, and in Baſe a Roſe Gules, on a chief Sable three Eſcalops of the firſt. The Dyke (or Wall) here, is aſſumed not only to difference, but to perpetuate the valiant Action of Graham before mentioned; in throwing down the Wall and Ditch, which the Romans made betwixt Forth an…

Etymology

A variant of dike, from Northern Middle English dik and dike (“ditch”), from Old Norse díki (“ditch”). Influenced by Middle Dutch dijc (“ditch; dam”) and Middle Low German dīk (“dam”). See also ditch.

Synonyms

ditchtrenchfossepuddlepondpoollakeletmeredencaveholepitbankembankmentearthworkbankembankmentdamleveebreakwaterfloodwallseawall

This word in other languages

dique(Español)fossé(Français)Graben(Deutsch)trincheira(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ddyke
  • dkye
  • dyek
  • dykke
  • dyyke
  • ydke

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of dyke - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

ddyke1dkye2dyek2dykke1dyyke1ydke2
Edit distance from "dyke"

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 "dyke"?
"dyke" is spelled D-Y-K-E. The IPA pronunciation is /daɪk/.
What does "dyke" mean?
As a noun, "dyke" means: A long, narrow hollow dug from the ground to serve as a boundary marker.
What words are commonly confused with "dyke"?
"dyke" is commonly confused with "dykes", "de", "dy". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "dyke"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "dyke" is /daɪk/. 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 "dyke"?
A variant of dike, from Northern Middle English dik and dike (“ditch”), from Old Norse díki (“ditch”). Influenced by Middle Dutch dijc (“ditch; dam”) and Middle Low German dīk (“dam”). See also ditch. 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 "dyke", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 4 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

comm#17,801Hyun#17,857Igor#17,859Judd#17,878

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (6 here; floor ≥5).

Dixie6 variantscrore6 variantshaste6 variantsJolie6 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list