husk

/hʌsk/

//hʌsk// noun

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

"husk" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“husk” has 6 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #35,345. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#35,345
frequency rank, English
2,646
“H” headwords
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The dry, leafy or stringy exterior of certain vegetables or fruits, which must be removed before eating the meat inside.

Corpus desk

Index EN-husk · husk · English

husk · rank #35,345 · 6 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #35,345
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 6 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,646
  • PHOTO-FINISH hooters

Nearest frequency peer: hooters (-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 “husk”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “husk” 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).

husk vs hut
50% similar
husk vs Huw
25% similar
husk vs huts
50% similar

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

Key facts for husk
PropertyValue
Headwordhusk
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/hʌsk/
Letters4
Frequency rank#35,345
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “husk”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).husklands here:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “hooters” (#35,344), “Hussey” (#35,346), “Iberian” (#35,347). Among 2,646 “H” headwords, “husk” is #35,345. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 6 spelling variants around husk (IPA /hʌsk/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #35,345 among 2,646 “H” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for husk, with forms such as "hhusk", "hsuk", and "huks". 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, "hut", "Huw", "huts", 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 huske, husk (“husk”). Perhaps from Old English *husuc, *hosuc (“little covering, sheath”), diminutive of hosu (“pod, shell, husk”), from Proto-West Germanic *hosā, from Proto-Germanic *husǭ (“covering, shell, leggings”), from Proto-Indo-… The correct English form is husk, spelled H-U-S-K.

Definition

  1. 1
    The dry, leafy or stringy exterior of certain vegetables or fruits, which must be removed before eating the meat inside.
  2. 2
    Any form of useless, dried up, and subsequently worthless exterior of something.
  3. 3
    The supporting frame of a run of millstones.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. A coconut has a very thick husk.
  2. His attorney was a dried-up husk of a man.

Etymology

From Middle English huske, husk (“husk”). Perhaps from Old English *husuc, *hosuc (“little covering, sheath”), diminutive of hosu (“pod, shell, husk”), from Proto-West Germanic *hosā, from Proto-Germanic *husǭ (“covering, shell, leggings”), from Proto-Indo-European *kawəs- / kawes- (“cover”). If so, equivalent to hose + -ock. Alternatively from Middle Low German hûs(e)ken, hü̂seken (“little house, sheath”), Middle Dutch husekijn (“little house, core of fruit, case”), diminutive of hûs (“house”). Compare Dutch huisje, German Häuschen, both also used for “snailshell”.

This word in other languages

farfolla(Español)écale(Français)Hülse(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • hhusk
  • hsuk
  • huks
  • huskk
  • hussk
  • uhsk

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

hhusk1hsuk2huks2huskk1hussk1uhsk2
Edit distance from "husk"

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 "husk"?
"husk" is spelled H-U-S-K. The IPA pronunciation is /hʌsk/.
What does "husk" mean?
As a noun, "husk" means: The dry, leafy or stringy exterior of certain vegetables or fruits, which must be removed before eating the meat inside.
What words are commonly confused with "husk"?
"husk" is commonly confused with "hut", "Huw", "huts". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "husk"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "husk" is /hʌsk/. 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 "husk"?
From Middle English huske, husk (“husk”). Perhaps from Old English *husuc, *hosuc (“little covering, sheath”), diminutive of hosu (“pod, shell, husk”), from Proto-West Germanic *hosā, from Proto-Germanic *husǭ (“covering, shell, leggings”), from P... 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 "husk", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 4 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

hock#35,339Kath#35,374Kita#35,377gaol#35,310

Similar misspelling depth

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

Jeannie6 variantsLottie6 variantsMDMA6 variantsMinas6 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list