fuddle
/ˈfʌdəl/
"fuddle" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“fuddle” 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 confuse or befuddle.
Corpus desk
Index EN-fuddle · fuddle · English
fuddle · 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 "F" 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.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | fuddle |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| IPA | /ˈfʌdəl/ |
| Letters | 6 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “fuddle” sits in English frequency
Rare enough to double-check
fuddle is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as averb, transcribed /ˈfʌdəl/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.
fuddle doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.
Etymologically, the entry records: Compare Dutch vod (“soft”), German dialect fuddeln (“to swindle”). The correct English form is fuddle, spelled F-U-D-D-L-E.
Definition
- 1To confuse or befuddle.
- 2To intoxicate.
- 3To become intoxicated; to get drunk.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how fuddle appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
She's fuddled my fancy, she's muddled me good / I've taken to drinking, and given up food
If an author fuddles himself, I don’t know why he should be let off a headache the next morning […]
Etymology
Compare Dutch vod (“soft”), German dialect fuddeln (“to swindle”).
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
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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.