mogwai

/ˈmɒɡwaɪ/

//ˈmɒɡwaɪ// noun

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

"mogwai" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“mogwai” is uncommon English (frequency #70,914 among 36,575 “M” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#70,914
frequency rank, English
36,575
“M” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A kind of demon held to be harmful to humans.

Key facts for mogwai
PropertyValue
Headwordmogwai
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈmɒɡwaɪ/
Letters6
Frequency rank#70,914
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “mogwai” 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). mogwai lands here:

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

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

Rare enough to double-check

mogwai is uncommon English at frequency #70,914 among 36,575 “M” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈmɒɡwaɪ/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "A kind of demon held to be harmful to humans.".

No misspelling variants are generated for mogwai in our index, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. Our dataset records no confusable match here, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Cantonese 魔怪 (mo1 gwaai3), 魔鬼 (mo1 gwai2). The correct English form is mogwai, spelled M-O-G-W-A-I.

Definition

  1. 1
    A kind of demon held to be harmful to humans.

Etymology

From Cantonese 魔怪 (mo1 gwaai3), 魔鬼 (mo1 gwai2).

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 "mogwai"?
"mogwai" is spelled M-O-G-W-A-I. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈmɒɡwaɪ/.
What does "mogwai" mean?
As a noun, "mogwai" means: A kind of demon held to be harmful to humans.
How do you pronounce "mogwai"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "mogwai" is /ˈmɒɡwaɪ/. 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 "mogwai"?
From Cantonese 魔怪 (mo1 gwaai3), 魔鬼 (mo1 gwai2). 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 “mogwai”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is M-O-G-W-A-I - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈmɒɡwaɪ/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words

Other uncommon English words near this rank

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