lousy

/ˈlaʊ.zi/

//ˈlaʊ.zi// adj

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

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

The verdict

“lousy” has 7 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #19,383. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#19,383
frequency rank, English
2,297
“L” headwords
7
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Remarkably bad; of poor quality.

Corpus desk

Index EN-lousy · lousy · English

lousy · rank #19,383 · 7 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #19,383
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 7 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,297
  • PHOTO-FINISH linger

Nearest frequency peer: linger (-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 “lousy”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “lousy” 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).

lousy vs loy
60% similar
lousy vs Lucy
40% similar
lousy vs lust
60% similar

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

Key facts for lousy
PropertyValue
Headwordlousy
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈlaʊ.zi/
Letters5
Frequency rank#19,383
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “lousy”

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).lousylands 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 “linger” (#19,382), “luncheon” (#19,384), “limbo” (#19,381). Among 2,297 “L” headwords, “lousy” is #19,383. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 7 spelling variants around lousy (IPA /ˈlaʊ.zi/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #19,383 among 2,297 “L” headwords. Wiktionary lists 6 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for lousy, with forms such as "llousy", "losuy", and "loussy". 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, "loy", "Lucy", "lust", 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 lousy, lowsy, lousi, equivalent to louse + -y. The correct English form is lousy, spelled L-O-U-S-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    Remarkably bad; of poor quality.
  2. 2
    Dirty or untidy.
  3. 3
    Unwell; under the weather.
  4. 4
    Underhanded; mean; contemptible.
  5. 5
    Infested with lice.
  6. 6
    Filled or packed (with something, usually bad).

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. No offense, but his cooking is lousy.
  2. I cleaned the lousy garage.

Etymology

From Middle English lousy, lowsy, lousi, equivalent to louse + -y.

This word in other languages

pésimo(Español)pouilleux(Français)lausig(Deutsch)péssimo(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • llousy
  • losuy
  • loussy
  • lousyy
  • louys
  • luosy
  • olusy

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of lousy - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

llousy1losuy2loussy1lousyy1louys2luosy2olusy2
Edit distance from "lousy"

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 "lousy"?
"lousy" is spelled L-O-U-S-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈlaʊ.zi/.
What does "lousy" mean?
As an adjective, "lousy" means: Remarkably bad; of poor quality.
What words are commonly confused with "lousy"?
"lousy" is commonly confused with "loy", "Lucy", "lust". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "lousy"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "lousy" is /ˈlaʊ.zi/. 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 "lousy"?
From Middle English lousy, lowsy, lousi, equivalent to louse + -y. 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 "lousy", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

limbo#19,381kyrie#19,377hydra#19,362Olson#19,405

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (7 here; floor ≥5).

mammal7 variantsmuzzle7 variantsOrtiz7 variantsovert7 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list