Mayhew
/ˈmeɪhju/
"mayhew" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“Mayhew” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #37,568 in English word frequency and used as a proper noun.
- #37,568
- frequency rank, English
- 6
- letters
- 9
- tracked misspellings
- 8
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A surname from Norman.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | Mayhew |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Proper noun |
| IPA | /ˈmeɪhju/ |
| Letters | 6 |
| Frequency rank | #37,568 |
| Misspellings tracked | 9 |
| Confusable pairs | 8 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “Mayhew” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for Mayhew is 6 letters long, classified as a proper noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈmeɪhju/. Corpus data places it at rank #37,568 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 4 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for Mayhew, with forms such as "amyhew", "mahyew", and "mayehw". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 8 confusable-pair relationships, "mayne", "maybe", "Mayer", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.
Etymologically, the entry records: Anglicized form of Norman Mahieu, a common form of the personal name Matthew. The correct English form is Mayhew, spelled M-A-Y-H-E-W.
Definition
- 1A surname from Norman.
- 2An unincorporated community in Mayhew Lake Township, Benton County, Minnesota, United States.
- 3An unincorporated community in Lowndes County, Mississippi, United States.
- 4A community in Horton township, Renfrew County, Ontario, Canada.
Etymology
Anglicized form of Norman Mahieu, a common form of the personal name Matthew.
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: amyhew,mahyew,mayehw,mayheww,mayhhew,mayhwe,mayyhew,mmayhew,myahew
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of Mayhew - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.
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
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Using “Mayhew”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is M-A-Y-H-E-W - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈmeɪhju/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “mayne” - see the side-by-side comparison. Mayhew vs mayne
- 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.