goffin

noun

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

The verdict

“goffin” is uncommon English (frequency #62,175 among 18,276 “G” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#62,175
frequency rank, English
18,276
“G” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Alternative form of coffin (“exploratory trench; deep ditch”).

Key facts for goffin
PropertyValue
Headwordgoffin
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters6
Frequency rank#62,175
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “goffin” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). goffin lands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

goffin is uncommon English at frequency #62,175 among 18,276 “G” headwords, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Alternative form of coffin (“exploratory trench; deep ditch”).".

goffin doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Cornish goghyn, the soft mutation of koghyn (“exploratory trench”). The correct English form is goffin, spelled G-O-F-F-I-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    Alternative form of coffin (“exploratory trench; deep ditch”).

Etymology

Borrowed from Cornish goghyn, the soft mutation of koghyn (“exploratory trench”).

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 "goffin"?
"goffin" is spelled G-O-F-F-I-N.
What does "goffin" mean?
As a noun, "goffin" means: Alternative form of coffin (“exploratory trench; deep ditch”).
What is the origin of the word "goffin"?
Borrowed from Cornish goghyn, the soft mutation of koghyn (“exploratory trench”). 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.

Using “goffin”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is G-O-F-F-I-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list