putty

Name: putty, English Word Data
Creator: Wiktionary
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

/ˈpʌti/

//ˈpʌti// noun

By PlainSpell · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) · analyzed September 3, 2026

The verdict

“putty” has 6 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #33,380. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#33,380
frequency rank, English: 4,417
“P” headwords: 6
tracked misspellings: 20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A form of cement, made from linseed oil and whiting, used to fixate panes of glass.

Corpus desk

Index EN-putty · putty · English

putty · rank #33,380 · 6 variants · 20 confusables

FREQ-MID #33,380
LEN-MID 5 letters
VOW-2 2 vowels
CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
VAR-MID 6 variants
BOOK-MID 4,417
PHOTO-FINISH psoriasis

Nearest frequency peer: psoriasis (-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.

priming

66,625
princely

66,624
psoriasis

66,622
putty

66,621
quench

66,620
radicalism

66,618

What this shows “putty” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

putty vs put

60% similar

putty vs puts

60% similar

putty vs pity

60% similar

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

Key facts for putty
Property	Value
Headword	putty
Language	English
Part of speech	Noun
IPA	/ˈpʌti/
Letters	5
Frequency rank	#33,380
Misspellings tracked	6
Confusable pairs	20
Source	Wiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “putty”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).puttylands here:

#33,380

#1#100#1K#10K#100K

← used constantlyrarely used →

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “psoriasis” (#33,379), “quench” (#33,381), “princely” (#33,377). Among 4,417 “P” headwords, “putty” is #33,380. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 6 spelling variants around putty (IPA /ˈpʌti/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #33,380 among 4,417 “P” headwords. Wiktionary lists 4 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for putty, with forms such as "pputty", "ptuty", and "puttyy". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "put", "puts", "pity", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from French potée (“polishing powder", originally "the contents of a pot, potful”), from French pot (“pot”). More at English pot. The correct English form is putty, spelled P-U-T-T-Y.

Definition

1
A form of cement, made from linseed oil and whiting, used to fixate panes of glass.
2
Any of a range of similar substances.
3
Any of a range of similar substances.
4
A golf ball made of composition and not gutta-percha.

Etymology

Borrowed from French potée (“polishing powder", originally "the contents of a pot, potful”), from French pot (“pot”). More at English pot.

This word in other languages

masilla(Español)mastic(Français)Kitt(Deutsch)massa(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

pputty
ptuty
puttyy
puty
putyt
uptty

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of putty - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

Edit distance from "putty"

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 "putty"?

"putty" is spelled P-U-T-T-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈpʌti/.

What does "putty" mean?

As a noun, "putty" means: A form of cement, made from linseed oil and whiting, used to fixate panes of glass.

What words are commonly confused with "putty"?

"putty" is commonly confused with "put", "puts", "pity". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.

How do you pronounce "putty"?

The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "putty" is /ˈpʌti/. 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 "putty"?

Borrowed from French potée (“polishing powder", originally "the contents of a pot, potful”), from French pot (“pot”). More at English pot. 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 "putty", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

radon#33,384 Powys#33,372 ponce#33,370 Pitts#33,365

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (6 here; floor ≥5).

pelt6 variants patten6 variants nerf6 variants snell6 variants