rewire

/ɹiːˈwaɪə(ɹ)/

//ɹiːˈwaɪə(ɹ)// verb

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

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

The verdict

“rewire” is uncommon English (frequency #56,408 among 3,094 “R” headwords), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#56,408
frequency rank, English
3,094
“R” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To replace or reconnect the wires of a device or installation.

Corpus desk

Index EN-rewire · rewire · English

rewire · rank #56,408 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #56,408
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,094
  • PHOTO-FINISH revelatory

Nearest frequency peer: revelatory (-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.

Long-tail ranks near “rewire”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “rewire” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for rewire
PropertyValue
Headwordrewire
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ɹiːˈwaɪə(ɹ)/
Letters6
Frequency rank#56,408
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “rewire” in English

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).rewirefalls in this rarity band:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Rare peers in the same band: “revelatory” (#56,407), “RFI” (#56,409), “retinopathy” (#56,406). Among 3,094 “R” headwords, “rewire” is #56,408. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

rewire is uncommon English at frequency #56,408 among 3,094 “R” headwords, classed as averb, transcribed /ɹiːˈwaɪə(ɹ)/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for rewire, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: From re- + wire. The correct English form is rewire, spelled R-E-W-I-R-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    To replace or reconnect the wires of a device or installation.
  2. 2
    To change the functionality of something by altering the parameters or logic.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. I had to rewire the circuit where the old wires had shorted out.
  2. The electrician said that we couldn't add a new outlet without rewiring.

Etymology

From re- + wire.

This word in other languages

recâbler(Français)

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 "rewire"?
"rewire" is spelled R-E-W-I-R-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ɹiːˈwaɪə(ɹ)/.
What does "rewire" mean?
As a verb, "rewire" means: To replace or reconnect the wires of a device or installation.
How do you pronounce "rewire"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "rewire" is /ɹiːˈwaɪə(ɹ)/. 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 "rewire"?
From re- + wire. 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 "rewire", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

russet#56,415raring#56,398Scylla#56,422Shlomo#56,433

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list