fusty
/ˈfʌsti/
"fusty" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“fusty” is outside the top-ranked English vocabulary, used as an adjective - the kind of word writers most often double-check.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 5
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Moldy or musty.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | fusty |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | /ˈfʌsti/ |
| Letters | 5 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “fusty” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for fusty is 5 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈfʌsti/. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. Wiktionary records 4 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for fusty, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English fusty, equivalent to fust + -y. Compare Scots foosty. The correct English form is fusty, spelled F-U-S-T-Y.
Definition
- 1Moldy or musty.
- 2Stale-smelling or stuffy.
- 3Old-fashioned, refusing to change or update.
- 4Tasting of the cask.
Etymology
From Middle English fusty, equivalent to fust + -y. Compare Scots foosty.
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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Using “fusty”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is F-U-S-T-Y - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈfʌsti/ (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
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.