fetch

/fɛt͡ʃ/

//fɛt͡ʃ// verb

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

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

The verdict

“fetch” has 8 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #12,046. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#12,046
frequency rank, English
2,507
“F” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
13
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To retrieve; to bear towards; to go and get.

Corpus desk

Index EN-fetch · fetch · English

fetch · rank #12,046 · 8 variants · 13 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #12,046
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-MID 13 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,507
  • PHOTO-FINISH fashionable

Nearest frequency peer: fashionable (-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 “fetch”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “fetch” 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).

fetch vs FTC
0% similar
fetch vs fete
60% similar
fetch vs fetus
60% similar

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

Key facts for fetch
PropertyValue
Headwordfetch
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/fɛt͡ʃ/
Letters5
Frequency rank#12,046
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs13
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “fetch”

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).fetchlands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “fashionable” (#12,045), “fishermen” (#12,047), “exemption” (#12,044). Among 2,507 “F” headwords, “fetch” is #12,046. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around fetch (IPA /fɛt͡ʃ/), averb. Corpus frequency is #12,046 among 2,507 “F” headwords. Wiktionary lists 10 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for fetch, with forms such as "eftch", "fecth", and "fetcch". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 13 confusable-pair relationships, "FTC", "fete", "fetus", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: The verb is derived from Middle English fecchen (“to get and bring back, fetch; to come for, get and take away; to steal; to carry away to kill; to search for; to obtain, procure”) [and other forms], from Old English feċċan, fæċċan, feccean (“to fetch, brin… The correct English form is fetch, spelled F-E-T-C-H.

Definition

  1. 1
    To retrieve; to bear towards; to go and get.
  2. 2
    To obtain as price or equivalent; to sell for.
  3. 3
    To bring or get within reach by going; to reach; to arrive at; to attain; to reach by sailing.
  4. 4
    To bring oneself; to make headway; to veer; as, to fetch about; to fetch to windward.
  5. 5
    To take (a breath); to heave (a sigh).
  6. 6
    To cause to come; to bring to a particular state.
  7. 7
    To recall from a swoon; to revive; sometimes with to.
  8. 8
    To reduce; to throw.
  9. 9
    To accomplish; to achieve; to perform, with certain objects or actions.
  10. 10
    To make (a pump) draw water by pouring water into the top and working the handle.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. You have to fetch some sugar in order to proceed with the recipe.
  2. I'm thirsty. Can you fetch me a glass of water, please?

Etymology

The verb is derived from Middle English fecchen (“to get and bring back, fetch; to come for, get and take away; to steal; to carry away to kill; to search for; to obtain, procure”) [and other forms], from Old English feċċan, fæċċan, feccean (“to fetch, bring; to draw; to gain, take; to seek”), a variant of fetian, fatian (“to bring near, fetch; to acquire, obtain; to bring on, induce; to fetch a wife, marry”) and possibly related to Old English facian, fācian (“to acquire, obtain; to try to obtain; to get; to get to, reach”), both from Proto-Germanic *fatōną, *fatjaną (“to hold, seize; to fetch”), from Proto-Indo-European *ped- (“to step, walk; to fall, stumble”). The English word is cognate with Dutch vatten (“to apprehend, catch; to grasp; to understand”), German fassen (“to catch, grasp; to capture, seize”), English fet (“(obsolete) to fetch”), Faroese fata (“to grasp, understand”), Danish fatte (“to grasp, understand”), Swedish fatta (“to grasp, understand”), Icelandic feta (“to go, step”), West Frisian fetsje (“to grasp”). The noun is derived from the verb.

Synonyms

collect

This word in other languages

traer(Español)ramener(Français)holen(Deutsch)buscar(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • eftch
  • fecth
  • fetcch
  • fetchh
  • fethc
  • fettch
  • ffetch
  • ftech

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of fetch - 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.

eftch2fecth2fetcch1fetchh1fethc2fettch1ffetch1ftech2
Edit distance from "fetch"

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 "fetch"?
"fetch" is spelled F-E-T-C-H. The IPA pronunciation is /fɛt͡ʃ/.
What does "fetch" mean?
As a verb, "fetch" means: To retrieve; to bear towards; to go and get.
What words are commonly confused with "fetch"?
"fetch" is commonly confused with "FTC", "fete", "fetus". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "fetch"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "fetch" is /fɛt͡ʃ/. 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 "fetch"?
The verb is derived from Middle English fecchen (“to get and bring back, fetch; to come for, get and take away; to steal; to carry away to kill; to search for; to obtain, procure”) [and other forms], from Old English feċċan, fæċċan, feccean (“to f... 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 "fetch", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Edwin#12,040fuzzy#12,053Gibbs#12,054decor#12,032

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

crest8 variantsHerman8 variantschord8 variantsBronx8 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list