# mire

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈmaɪə/ · frequency rank #39,914

## Definitions
1. Deep mud; moist, spongy earth.
2. A bog or fen; (in wetland science, specifically) a peatland which is actively forming peat, such as an active bog or fen.
3. An undesirable situation; a predicament.

## Etymology
From Middle English mire, a borrowing from Old Norse mýrr, from Proto-Germanic *miuzijō, whence also Swedish myr, Norwegian myr, Icelandic mýri, Dutch *mier (in placenames, for example Mierlo). Related to Proto-Germanic *meusą, whence Old English mēos, and Proto-Germanic *musą, whence Old English mos (English moss).

## Easily confused with
- **Mr** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mire-vs-mr)
- **Mrs** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mire-vs-mrs)
- **mix** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mire-vs-mix)
- **mit** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mire-vs-mit)
- **MRI** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mire-vs-mri)
- **moe** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mire-vs-moe)
- **MOR** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mire-vs-mor)
- **Mme** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mire-vs-mme)
- **miz** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mire-vs-miz)
- **MRT** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mire-vs-mrt)
- **MRC** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mire-vs-mrc)
- **MRP** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mire-vs-mrp)
- **more** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mire-vs-more)
- **move** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mire-vs-move)
- **miss** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mire-vs-miss)
- **mode** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mire-vs-mode)
- **mist** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mire-vs-mist)
- **mole** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mire-vs-mole)
- **mute** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mire-vs-mute)
- **muse** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/mire-vs-muse)

## Common misspellings (5)
`imre`, `mier`, `mirre`, `mmire`, `mrie`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/mire