loft

/lɒft/

//lɒft// noun

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

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

The verdict

“loft” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #14,786 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#14,786
frequency rank, English
4
letters
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Air, the air; the sky, the heavens.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

loft vs Lt
25% similar
loft vs lot
75% similar
loft vs low
50% similar

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

Key facts for loft
PropertyValue
Headwordloft
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/lɒft/
Letters4
Frequency rank#14,786
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “loft” sits in English frequency

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for loft is 4 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /lɒft/. Corpus data places it at rank #14,786 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 10 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for loft, with forms such as "lfot", "lloft", and "lofft". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "Lt", "lot", "low", 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 lofte (“air, sky, upper region, loft”), from Old English loft, (doublet of native Old English lyft) of North Germanic origin, from Old Norse lopt (“upper chamber, attic, region of sky, air”), from Proto-Germanic *luftuz (“air, sky”). Aki… The correct English form is loft, spelled L-O-F-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    Air, the air; the sky, the heavens.
  2. 2
    An attic or similar space (often used for storage) in the roof of a house or other building.
  3. 3
    An attic or similar space (often used for storage) in the roof of a house or other building.
  4. 4
    The thickness of a soft object when not under pressure.
  5. 5
    A gallery or raised apartment in a church, hall, etc.
  6. 6
    A residential flat (apartment) on an upper floor of an apartment building.
  7. 7
    Ellipsis of pigeon loft.
  8. 8
    The pitch or slope of the face of a golf club (tending to drive the ball upward).
  9. 9
    A lofted drive.
  10. 10
    A floor or room placed above another.

Etymology

From Middle English lofte (“air, sky, upper region, loft”), from Old English loft, (doublet of native Old English lyft) of North Germanic origin, from Old Norse lopt (“upper chamber, attic, region of sky, air”), from Proto-Germanic *luftuz (“air, sky”). Akin to Scots lift (“air; sky; firmament”), Dutch lucht (“air”), German Luft (“air”), Old English lyft (“air”). Doublet of lift and luft. Related to aloft. Cognate with Scots loft, laft (“loft”), Irish lochta (“loft”).

This word in other languages

desván(Español)grenier(Français)Dachboden(Deutsch)sótão(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: lfot,lloft,lofft,loftt,lotf,olft

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

lfot2lloft1lofft1loftt1lotf2olft2
Edit distance from "loft"

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 "loft"?
"loft" is spelled L-O-F-T. The IPA pronunciation is /lɒft/.
What does "loft" mean?
As a noun, "loft" means: Air, the air; the sky, the heavens.
What words are commonly confused with "loft"?
"loft" is commonly confused with "Lt", "lot", "low". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "loft"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "loft" is /lɒft/. 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 "loft"?
From Middle English lofte (“air, sky, upper region, loft”), from Old English loft, (doublet of native Old English lyft) of North Germanic origin, from Old Norse lopt (“upper chamber, attic, region of sky, air”), from Proto-Germanic *luftuz (“air, ... 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.

Using “loft”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is L-O-F-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /lɒft/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “Lt” - see the side-by-side comparison. loft vs Lt
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list