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hustle

Definition, pronunciation, etymology, and usage for the English word. Free spelling reference powered by Wiktionary.

Letters

6 characters

Language

English

word origin

Source

Wiktionary

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Detailed reference entry for the English word "hustle", 6-letters, with pronunciation in International Phonetic Alphabet notation, etymology traced through Germanic and Romance roots where applicable, common misspelling variants catalogued from Hunspell error dictionaries, and usage frequency ranked against the top 100,000 English words in the Wordfreq corpus. PlainSpell covers English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German spelling with confusable-pair detection that highlights visually and phonetically similar words. This entry for "hustle" includes synonyms, antonyms, homophones, and cross-language translation pointers sourced from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org extract. Whether you are verifying the correct spelling of "hustle" for academic writing, checking homophone confusion, or exploring etymological origins, this page provides a citation-backed, free reference that requires no sign-up.

hustle is aEnglishverb. It means: To push someone roughly; to crowd; to jostle. Pronounced /ˈhʌsəl/. Often confused with hustler and haste.

Key facts for hustle
PropertyValue
Headwordhustle
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ˈhʌsəl/
Letters6
Frequency rank#11,232
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs8
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency rank visualization

Position of hustle in English word frequency (lower rank = more common)

Source: Wordfreq corpus

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for hustle is 6 letters long, classified as averb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈhʌsəl/. Corpus data places it at rank #11,232 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it.Wiktionary records 12 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our Hunspell-derived misspelling index lists 9 documented wrong-spelling variants for hustle, with forms such as "hhustle", "hsutle", and "huslte". Each variant represents a distinct typo pattern that appears often enough in corpora to be worth flagging, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution.It also participates in 8 confusable-pair relationships, "hustler", "haste", "humble", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Dutch husselen or by metathesis from Dutch hutselen (“to shake up”), a frequentative of hutsen (“to stir, to move something (back and forth)”). Root origin matters for spelling because borrowed morphemes (Greek, Latin, Old French, Old English) carry their source-language orthographic conventions into modern English, which is why historical etymology is often the cleanest predictor of whether a cluster like "-ough", "-eau", or "-tion" will appear. For readers arriving here from a spelling check, the authoritative guidance is: the correct English form is hustle, spelled H-U-S-T-L-E, and any other sequence of those letters, regardless of how natural it feels, is a misspelling in standard orthography.

Definition

  1. 1
    To push someone roughly; to crowd; to jostle.
  2. 2
    To rush or hurry.
  3. 3
    To bundle; to stow something quickly.
  4. 4
    To con, swindle, or deceive, especially financially.
  5. 5
    To play deliberately badly at a game or sport in an attempt to encourage players to challenge one.
  6. 6
    To obtain by illicit or forceful action.
  7. 7
    To sell sex; to work as a pimp.
  8. 8
    To be a prostitute; to exchange use of one's body for sexual purposes for money.
  9. 9
    To serve (a clientele) as a prostitute.
  10. 10
    To dance the hustle, a disco dance.
  11. 11
    To work.
  12. 12
    To put a lot of effort into one's work.

Etymology

From Dutch husselen or by metathesis from Dutch hutselen (“to shake up”), a frequentative of hutsen (“to stir, to move something (back and forth)”).

Synonyms

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: hhustle,hsutle,huslte,husstle,hustel,hustlle,husttle,hutsle,uhstle

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

Relative frequency of common misspelling types for hustle

Misspelling Variants of "hustle"

hhustle7hsutle6huslte6husstle7hustel6hustlle7husttle7hutsle6
Misspelling Variants of "hustle"

Frequency rank: #11,232 in English

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "hustle"?
"hustle" is spelled H-U-S-T-L-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈhʌsəl/.
What does "hustle" mean?
As a verb, "hustle" means: To push someone roughly; to crowd; to jostle.
What words are commonly confused with "hustle"?
"hustle" is commonly confused with "hustler", "haste", "humble". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "hustle"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "hustle" is /ˈhʌsəl/. 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 "hustle"?
From Dutch husselen or by metathesis from Dutch hutselen (“to shake up”), a frequentative of hutsen (“to stir, to move something (back and forth)”). 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.

Nearby English words

Other entries that begin with the letter H in our English index:

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Data Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Frequency data from Wordfreq. Misspellings derived from Hunspell dictionaries.