quail

/kweɪl/

//kweɪl// verb

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

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

The verdict

“quail” has 6 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #24,560. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#24,560
frequency rank, English
288
“Q” headwords
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To waste away; to fade, to wither.

Corpus desk

Index EN-quail · quail · English

quail · rank #24,560 · 6 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #24,560
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 6 variants
  • BOOK-MID 288
  • PHOTO-FINISH quirk

Nearest frequency peer: quirk (+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 “quail”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “quail” 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).

quail vs quit
60% similar
quail vs quiz
60% similar
quail vs quid
60% similar

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

Key facts for quail
PropertyValue
Headwordquail
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/kweɪl/
Letters5
Frequency rank#24,560
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “quail”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).quaillands here:

#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 “quirk” (#24,561), “puzzling” (#24,558), “rabid” (#24,562). Among 288 “Q” headwords, “quail” is #24,560. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 6 spelling variants around quail (IPA /kweɪl/), averb. Corpus frequency is #24,560 among 288 “Q” headwords. Wiktionary lists 4 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for quail, with forms such as "qauil", "qquail", and "quaill". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "quit", "quiz", "quid", 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 quaylen, from Middle Dutch queilen, quēlen, from Old Dutch *quelan, from Proto-West Germanic *kwelan, from Proto-Germanic *kwelaną (“to suffer”). Doublet of queal. The correct English form is quail, spelled Q-U-A-I-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    To waste away; to fade, to wither.
  2. 2
    To daunt or frighten (someone).
  3. 3
    To lose heart or courage; to be daunted or fearful.
  4. 4
    Of courage, faith, etc.: to slacken, to give way.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Death dvvels vvithin vs, and if gentle Peace / Diſcend not ſoone, our ſorrovves to ſurceaſe, / Latium (alreadie quaild) vvill be deſtroyd.
  2. But when he meant to quaile and shake the Orbe, / He was as ratling Thunder.

Etymology

From Middle English quaylen, from Middle Dutch queilen, quēlen, from Old Dutch *quelan, from Proto-West Germanic *kwelan, from Proto-Germanic *kwelaną (“to suffer”). Doublet of queal.

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • qauil
  • qquail
  • quaill
  • quali
  • quial
  • uqail

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of quail - 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.

qauil2qquail1quaill1quali2quial2uqail2
Edit distance from "quail"

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 "quail"?
"quail" is spelled Q-U-A-I-L. The IPA pronunciation is /kweɪl/.
What does "quail" mean?
As a verb, "quail" means: To waste away; to fade, to wither.
What words are commonly confused with "quail"?
"quail" is commonly confused with "quit", "quiz", "quid". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "quail"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "quail" is /kweɪl/. 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 "quail"?
From Middle English quaylen, from Middle Dutch queilen, quēlen, from Old Dutch *quelan, from Proto-West Germanic *kwelan, from Proto-Germanic *kwelaną (“to suffer”). Doublet of queal. 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 "quail", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

quirk#24,561rabid#24,562puffy#24,557POTUS#24,550

Similar misspelling depth

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

shay6 variantstung6 variantslids6 variantsliang6 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list