godwit
/ˈɡɑd.wɪt/
"godwit" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“godwit” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. 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) - Any of four species of long-billed migratory wading birds in the genus Limosa, of the family Scolopacidae.
Corpus desk
Index EN-godwit · godwit · English
godwit · 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 "G" 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 | godwit |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈɡɑd.wɪt/ |
| Letters | 6 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “godwit” in English
Rare enough to double-check
godwit is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈɡɑd.wɪt/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Any of four species of long-billed migratory wading birds in the genus Limosa, of the family Scolopacidae.".
Zero misspellings are on record for godwit in our index, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.
Etymologically, the entry records: Origin unknown. A surface analysis would suggest Old English *gōdwiht as the term's ultimate origin, corresponding to good + wight (“creature”), but the term is attested only since late Middle English. The Oxford English Dictionary considers the term to pro… The correct English form is godwit, spelled G-O-D-W-I-T.
Definition
- 1Any of four species of long-billed migratory wading birds in the genus Limosa, of the family Scolopacidae.
Recorded use
Wiktionary exampleThese source excerpts show how godwit appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
My foot-boy shall eat pheasants, calvered salmons, / Knots, godwits, lampreys: I myself will have / The beards of barbels, served instead of salads […]
Etymology
Origin unknown. A surface analysis would suggest Old English *gōdwiht as the term's ultimate origin, corresponding to good + wight (“creature”), but the term is attested only since late Middle English. The Oxford English Dictionary considers the term to probably have originally been imitative of the bird's call.
Synonyms
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.