hurry

/ˈhʌ.ɹi/

//ˈhʌ.ɹi// noun

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

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

The verdict

“hurry” has 6 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #5,690. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#5,690
frequency rank, English
2,646
“H” headwords
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A rushed action.

Corpus desk

Index EN-hurry · hurry · English

hurry · rank #5,690 · 6 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #5,690
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 6 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,646
  • PHOTO-FINISH horn

Nearest frequency peer: horn (-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 “hurry”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “hurry” 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).

hurry vs hurt
60% similar
hurry vs hurts
60% similar
hurry vs husky
60% similar

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

Key facts for hurry
PropertyValue
Headwordhurry
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈhʌ.ɹi/
Letters5
Frequency rank#5,690
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “hurry”

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

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “horn” (#5,689), “immune” (#5,691), “heights” (#5,688). Among 2,646 “H” headwords, “hurry” is #5,690. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 6 spelling variants around hurry (IPA /ˈhʌ.ɹi/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #5,690 among 2,646 “H” headwords. Wiktionary lists 4 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for hurry, with forms such as "hhurry", "hrury", and "hurryy". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "hurt", "hurts", "husky", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English horien (“to rush, impel”), probably a variation of hurren (“to vibrate rapidly, buzz”), from Proto-Germanic *hurzaną (“to rush”) (compare Middle High German hurren (“to hasten”), Norwegian hurre (“to whirl around”)), from Proto-Indo-Euro… The correct English form is hurry, spelled H-U-R-R-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    A rushed action.
  2. 2
    An urgency.
  3. 3
    An incidence of a defensive pressure that forces the quarterback to throw the ball earlier than intended or rush their decision, often leading to an incomplete pass or failed play.
  4. 4
    A tremolando passage for violins, etc., accompanying an exciting situation.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Why are you in such a big hurry?
  2. At length, one night, when the company by ſome accident broke up much ſooner than ordinary, ſo that the candles were not half burnt out, ſhe was not able to reſiſt the temptation, but reſolved to have them ſome way or other. Accordingly, as ſoon as the hurry was over, and the ſervants, as ſhe thought, all gone to ſleep, ſhe ſtole out of her bed, and went…

Etymology

From Middle English horien (“to rush, impel”), probably a variation of hurren (“to vibrate rapidly, buzz”), from Proto-Germanic *hurzaną (“to rush”) (compare Middle High German hurren (“to hasten”), Norwegian hurre (“to whirl around”)), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱers- (“to run”) (compare Latin currō (“to run”), Tocharian A kursär/Tocharian B kwarsär (“league; course”)). Related to hurr, horse, rush. Alternative etymology derives hurry as a variant of harry.

This word in other languages

prisa(Español)précipitation(Français)Eile(Deutsch)pressa(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • hhurry
  • hrury
  • hurryy
  • hury
  • huryr
  • uhrry

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of hurry - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

hhurry1hrury2hurryy1hury1huryr2uhrry2
Edit distance from "hurry"

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 "hurry"?
"hurry" is spelled H-U-R-R-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈhʌ.ɹi/.
What does "hurry" mean?
As a noun, "hurry" means: A rushed action.
What words are commonly confused with "hurry"?
"hurry" is commonly confused with "hurt", "hurts", "husky". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "hurry"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "hurry" is /ˈhʌ.ɹi/. 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 "hurry"?
From Middle English horien (“to rush, impel”), probably a variation of hurren (“to vibrate rapidly, buzz”), from Proto-Germanic *hurzaną (“to rush”) (compare Middle High German hurren (“to hasten”), Norwegian hurre (“to whirl around”)), from Proto... 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 "hurry", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

harsh#5,687genes#5,684flows#5,682farms#5,680

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (6 here; floor ≥5).

horn6 variantsimmune6 variantsKyle6 variantsorgan6 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list