frizz
/fɹɪz/
"frizz" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“frizz” is uncommon English (frequency #59,405 among 18,613 “F” headwords), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- #59,405
- frequency rank, English
- 18,613
- “F” headwords
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Of hair, to form into a mass of tight curls.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | frizz |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| IPA | /fɹɪz/ |
| Letters | 5 |
| Frequency rank | #59,405 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “frizz” sits in English frequency
Rare enough to double-check
frizz is uncommon English at frequency #59,405 among 18,613 “F” headwords, classed as averb, transcribed /fɹɪz/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 5 senses are on record.
No misspelling variants are generated for frizz in our index, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English frysen, from Old French friser, frizer (“to frizzle, crisp, curl, ruffle, braid, touch lightly, graze, scratch”), of Proto-Germanic origin, perhaps via Old Frankish *fris (“curl”), from Proto-Germanic *frisaz (“frizzy, curly”). Cognate w… The correct English form is frizz, spelled F-R-I-Z-Z.
Definition
- 1Of hair, to form into a mass of tight curls.
- 2To curl; to make frizzy.
- 3To form into little burs, knobs, or tufts, as the nap of cloth.
- 4To make (leather) soft and of even thickness by rubbing, as with pumice stone or a blunt instrument.
- 5To fry, cook, or sear with a sizzling noise; to sizzle.
Etymology
From Middle English frysen, from Old French friser, frizer (“to frizzle, crisp, curl, ruffle, braid, touch lightly, graze, scratch”), of Proto-Germanic origin, perhaps via Old Frankish *fris (“curl”), from Proto-Germanic *frisaz (“frizzy, curly”). Cognate with Old Frisian frisle, frēsle ("the hair of the head, lock of hair, curl, ringlet"; > North Frisian friessle, fressle (“hair, horse's tail”), West Frisian frisseljen (“braid of hair, braid”)), Old English frīs (“crisped, curled”).
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); 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
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Using “frizz”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is F-R-I-Z-Z - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /fɹɪz/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Other uncommon English words near this rank
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.