holdfast
"holdfast" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“holdfast” is uncommon English (frequency #81,407 among 2,646 “H” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- #81,407
- frequency rank, English
- 2,646
- “H” headwords
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Something to or by which an object can be securely fastened.
Corpus desk
Index EN-holdfast · holdfast · English
holdfast · rank #81,407 · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-RARE #81,407
- LEN-LONG 8 letters
- VOW-2 2 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-MID 2,646
- PHOTO-FINISH historicism
Nearest frequency peer: historicism (-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.
Long-tail ranks near “holdfast”
Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter
- hepatology
hepatology
18,599 corpus weight
- Hetfield
Hetfield
18,598 corpus weight
- highball
highball
18,597 corpus weight
- historicism
historicism
18,595 corpus weight
- holdfast
holdfast
18,594 corpus weight
- holey
holey
18,593 corpus weight
What this shows Long-tail view: where “holdfast” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | holdfast |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| Letters | 8 |
| Frequency rank | #81,407 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “holdfast” in English
Rare enough to double-check
holdfast is uncommon English at frequency #81,407 among 2,646 “H” headwords, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.
We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for holdfast, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.
Etymologically, the entry records: Deverbal from hold fast. The correct English form is holdfast, spelled H-O-L-D-F-A-S-T.
Definition
- 1Something to or by which an object can be securely fastened.
- 2A root-like structure that anchors aquatic sessile organisms, such as seaweed, other sessile algae, stalked crinoids, benthic cnidarians, and sponges, to the substrate.
- 3Actinomycosis.
- 4The aspect of a character that experiences destructive temptation.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how holdfast appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
And Ivy divided from the root, we have observed to live some years, by the cirrous parts commonly conceived but as tentacles and holdfasts unto it.
Alienation: A stage on the downside of the passage wherein the holdfast and the antihero take actions which bring about a disintegration of personality.
Etymology
Deverbal from hold fast.
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
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Similar English words by spelling shape
Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "holdfast", not the corpus desk frequency band.
Same letter count
Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).