scald

/skɔld/

//skɔld// verb

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

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

The verdict

“scald” is uncommon English (frequency #78,107 among 6,566 “S” headwords), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#78,107
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To burn with hot liquid.

Corpus desk

Index EN-scald · scald · English

scald · rank #78,107 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #78,107
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH scampi

Nearest frequency peer: scampi (+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 “scald”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for scald
PropertyValue
Headwordscald
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/skɔld/
Letters5
Frequency rank#78,107
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “scald” in English

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “scampi” (#78,108), “schematically” (#78,110), “Schwimmer” (#78,113). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “scald” is #78,107. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

scald is uncommon English at frequency #78,107 among 6,566 “S” headwords, classed as averb, transcribed /skɔld/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

scald has no tracked misspelling variants, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English scalden, assumed to stem from Old Northern French escalder (compare central Old French eschauder, eschalder), from Late Latin excaldāre (“bathe in hot water”), from ex- (“off, out”) + cal(i)dus (“hot”). Cognate with Old Swedish skalda, s… The correct English form is scald, spelled S-C-A-L-D.

Definition

  1. 1
    To burn with hot liquid.
  2. 2
    To heat almost to boiling.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. to scald the hand
  2. Mine own tears / Do scald like molten lead.

Etymology

From Middle English scalden, assumed to stem from Old Northern French escalder (compare central Old French eschauder, eschalder), from Late Latin excaldāre (“bathe in hot water”), from ex- (“off, out”) + cal(i)dus (“hot”). Cognate with Old Swedish skalda, skolda, skolla, skala, Swedish skålla, Danish skolde, Norwegian skålda, skaalda, Icelandic skálda. Also compare Old Norse skálda (“to rot, fall off, of hair”), to skalli (“baldness”), borrowed as Middle English scalle (“hair loss infektion, rash, blistering”), English scall.

This word in other languages

quemar(Español)ébouillanter(Français)verbrühen(Deutsch)escaldar(Português)

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 "scald"?
"scald" is spelled S-C-A-L-D. The IPA pronunciation is /skɔld/.
What does "scald" mean?
As a verb, "scald" means: To burn with hot liquid.
How do you pronounce "scald"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "scald" is /skɔld/. 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 "scald"?
From Middle English scalden, assumed to stem from Old Northern French escalder (compare central Old French eschauder, eschalder), from Late Latin excaldāre (“bathe in hot water”), from ex- (“off, out”) + cal(i)dus (“hot”). Cognate with Old Swedish... 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 "scald", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Sahab#78,099Shafi#78,117Sokol#78,141sower#78,142

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list