gloomy

/ˈɡluːmi/

//ˈɡluːmi// adj

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

"gloomy" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“gloomy” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #17,372. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#17,372
frequency rank, English
2,313
“G” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
9
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Not very illuminated; dim because of darkness, especially when appearing depressing or frightening.

Corpus desk

Index EN-gloomy · gloomy · English

gloomy · rank #17,372 · 9 variants · 9 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #17,372
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 9 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,313
  • PHOTO-FINISH glands

Nearest frequency peer: glands (-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 “gloomy”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “gloomy” 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).

gloomy vs glory
67% similar
gloomy vs groom
67% similar
gloomy vs goofy
67% similar

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

Key facts for gloomy
PropertyValue
Headwordgloomy
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈɡluːmi/
Letters6
Frequency rank#17,372
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs9
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “gloomy”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).gloomylands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “glands” (#17,371), “graceful” (#17,373), “glacial” (#17,370). Among 2,313 “G” headwords, “gloomy” is #17,372. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around gloomy (IPA /ˈɡluːmi/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #17,372 among 2,313 “G” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for gloomy, with forms such as "ggloomy", "glloomy", and "glomoy". 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 9 confusable-pair relationships, "glory", "groom", "goofy", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From gloom + -y. Cognate with Saterland Frisian glumig (“dark, gloomy”). The correct English form is gloomy, spelled G-L-O-O-M-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    Not very illuminated; dim because of darkness, especially when appearing depressing or frightening.
  2. 2
    Suffering from gloom; melancholy; dejected.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The cavern was gloomy.
  2. a gloomy temper or countenance

Etymology

From gloom + -y. Cognate with Saterland Frisian glumig (“dark, gloomy”).

This word in other languages

lóbrego(Español)lugubre(Français)düster(Deutsch)escuro(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ggloomy
  • glloomy
  • glomoy
  • glomy
  • gloommy
  • gloomyy
  • glooym
  • golomy
  • lgoomy

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ggloomy1glloomy1glomoy2glomy1gloommy1gloomyy1glooym2golomy2
Edit distance from "gloomy"

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 "gloomy"?
"gloomy" is spelled G-L-O-O-M-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈɡluːmi/.
What does "gloomy" mean?
As an adjective, "gloomy" means: Not very illuminated; dim because of darkness, especially when appearing depressing or frightening.
What words are commonly confused with "gloomy"?
"gloomy" is commonly confused with "glory", "groom", "goofy". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "gloomy"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "gloomy" is /ˈɡluːmi/. 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 "gloomy"?
From gloom + -y. Cognate with Saterland Frisian glumig (“dark, gloomy”). 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 "gloomy", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

glands#17,371gritty#17,375genera#17,368futile#17,367

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (9 here; floor ≥5).

Hayley9 variantsfreaky9 variantshinder9 variantsdebuts9 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list