half-mast
"half-mast" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“half-mast” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 9
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The lowered position, half the height of a mast, at which a flag is flown when mourning, especially expressing respect for the deceased.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | half-mast |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| Letters | 9 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “half-mast” sits in English frequency
Rare enough to double-check
half-mast is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.
half-mast has no tracked misspelling variants, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. Our dataset records no confusable match here, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.
This entry's etymology isn't recorded, so its spelling is best explained by sound-to-letter mapping rather than etymology. The correct English form is half-mast, spelled H-A-L-F---M-A-S-T.
Definition
- 1The lowered position, half the height of a mast, at which a flag is flown when mourning, especially expressing respect for the deceased.
- 2The lowered position of anything.
- 3An unfashionably short length of a pair of trousers.
- 4The state of having a partially erect penis.
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 “half-mast”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is H-A-L-F---M-A-S-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- 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.