in the wind

prep_phrase

"in-the-wind" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“in the wind” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a prep_phrase. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
11
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Impending or in the offing; imminent.

Corpus desk

Index EN-in-the-wind · in the wind · English

in the wind · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 11 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "I" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

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.

Key facts for in the wind
PropertyValue
Headwordin the wind
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechPrep_phrase
Letters11
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “in the wind” in English

in the windsits beyond the 100,000 most-frequent English words, in the long tail of technical, archaic, or otherwise rare vocabulary where spelling doubt tends to strike hardest.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

in the wind is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as aprep_phrase. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

Zero misspellings are on record for in the wind in our index, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

This entry carries no recorded etymology, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct English form is in the wind, spelled I-N- -T-H-E- -W-I-N-D.

Definition

  1. 1
    Impending or in the offing; imminent.
  2. 2
    At whereabouts unknown, especially when law enforcement authorities have lost track of one's location.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. There is something in the wind, that we cannot get in.
  2. There's trouble in the wind, my boys.

Synonyms

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "in the wind"?
"in the wind" is spelled I-N- -T-H-E- -W-I-N-D.
What does "in the wind" mean?
As a prep_phrase, "in the wind" means: Impending or in the offing; imminent.
What language does "in the wind" come from?
"in the wind" is a English word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list