gypsy

/ˈd͡ʒɪp.si/

//ˈd͡ʒɪp.si// noun

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

"gypsy" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“gypsy” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #13,926. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#13,926
frequency rank, English
2,313
“G” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
5
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Alternative form of Gypsy (“member of the Romani people”).

Corpus desk

Index EN-gypsy · gypsy · English

gypsy · rank #13,926 · 9 variants · 5 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #13,926
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 5 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,313
  • PHOTO-FINISH harassed

Nearest frequency peer: harassed (+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 “gypsy”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “gypsy” 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).

gypsy vs GPS
0% similar
gypsy vs gaps
60% similar
gypsy vs gyms
60% similar

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

Key facts for gypsy
PropertyValue
Headwordgypsy
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈd͡ʒɪp.si/
Letters5
Frequency rank#13,926
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs5
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “gypsy”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).gypsylands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “harassed” (#13,927), “giveaway” (#13,924), “heater” (#13,928). Among 2,313 “G” headwords, “gypsy” is #13,926. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around gypsy (IPA /ˈd͡ʒɪp.si/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #13,926 among 2,313 “G” headwords. Wiktionary lists 8 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for gypsy, with forms such as "ggypsy", "gpysy", and "gyppsy". 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 5 confusable-pair relationships, "GPS", "gaps", "gyms", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: See Gypsy. Compare bohemian, from Bohemia. The correct English form is gypsy, spelled G-Y-P-S-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    Alternative form of Gypsy (“member of the Romani people”).
  2. 2
    An itinerant person or any person, not necessarily Romani; a tinker, a traveller or a carny.
  3. 3
    A move in contra dancing in which two dancers walk in a circle around each other while maintaining eye contact (but not touching as in a swing). (Compare whole gyp, half gyp, and gypsy meltdown, in which this step precedes a swing.)
  4. 4
    A member of a Broadway musical chorus line.
  5. 5
    A person with a dark complexion.
  6. 6
    A sly, roguish woman.
  7. 7
    A fortune teller.
  8. 8
    A whitewashed South Asian.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. He championed the music of the gypsies as he did the Muslim and Jewish roots of Spanish culture. […] All these and more were fused in the forge of the gypsy experience into a singular art form, unlike any of its sources, evoking its own worldview, its own existential stance.
  2. Like a right gypsy, hath, at fast and loose, Beguiled me to the very heart of loss.

Etymology

See Gypsy. Compare bohemian, from Bohemia.

Synonyms

gyregypgip

This word in other languages

gitano(Español)gitan(Français)Zigeuner(Deutsch)cigano(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ggypsy
  • gpysy
  • gyppsy
  • gypssy
  • gypsyy
  • gypys
  • gyspy
  • gyypsy
  • ygpsy

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of gypsy - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

ggypsy1gpysy2gyppsy1gypssy1gypsyy1gypys2gyspy2gyypsy1
Edit distance from "gypsy"

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 "gypsy"?
"gypsy" is spelled G-Y-P-S-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈd͡ʒɪp.si/.
What does "gypsy" mean?
As a noun, "gypsy" means: Alternative form of Gypsy (“member of the Romani people”).
What words are commonly confused with "gypsy"?
"gypsy" is commonly confused with "GPS", "gaps", "gyms". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "gypsy"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "gypsy" is /ˈd͡ʒɪp.si/. 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 "gypsy"?
See Gypsy. Compare bohemian, from Bohemia. 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 "gypsy", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

finch#13,917edged#13,910deity#13,899Monty#13,963

Similar misspelling depth

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

garner9 variantsJensen9 variantsdrains9 variantsdiarrhea9 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list