# heed

> English word · Noun · IPA /hiːd/ · frequency rank #16,041

## Definitions
1. Careful attention.

## Etymology
From Middle English heden, from Old English hēdan (“to heed, take care, observe, attend, guard, take charge, take possession, receive”), from Proto-West Germanic *hōdijan (“to heed, guard”), from Proto-Indo-European *kadʰ- (“to heed, protect”). Cognate with West Frisian hoedje (“to heed”), Dutch hoeden (“to heed”), German hüten (“to heed”).

## Easily confused with
- **her** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/heed-vs-her)
- **hey** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/heed-vs-hey)
- **hes** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/heed-vs-hes)
- **hid** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/heed-vs-hid)
- **heh** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/heed-vs-heh)
- **hen** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/heed-vs-hen)
- **hue** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/heed-vs-hue)
- **HUD** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/heed-vs-hud)
- **hoe** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/heed-vs-hoe)
- **hem** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/heed-vs-hem)
- **hye** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/heed-vs-hye)
- **het** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/heed-vs-het)
- **Hel** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/heed-vs-hel)
- **hep** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/heed-vs-hep)
- **hse** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/heed-vs-hse)
- **hew** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/heed-vs-hew)
- **hod** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/heed-vs-hod)
- **here** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/heed-vs-here)
- **help** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/heed-vs-help)
- **held** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/heed-vs-held)

## Common misspellings (4)
`ehed`, `hede`, `heedd`, `hheed`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/heed