scurvy
/ˈskɜːvi/
"scurvy" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“scurvy” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #40,435. The variants make it a useful spelling check.
- #40,435
- frequency rank, English
- 6,566
- “S” headwords
- 10
- tracked misspellings
- 8
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Affected or covered with scurf (“skin disease causing flakes of skin to fall off”) or scabs; scurfy, scabby; also, of or relating to a skin disease causing scurf or to scurvy (noun noun sense 1).
Corpus desk
Index EN-scurvy · scurvy · English
scurvy · rank #40,435 · 10 variants · 8 confusables
- FREQ-MID #40,435
- LEN-LONG 6 letters
- VOW-2 2 vowels
- CONFUS-MID 8 pairs
- VAR-MID 10 variants
- BOOK-DENSE 6,566
- PHOTO-FINISH scribble
Nearest frequency peer: scribble (-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.
Frequency neighbourhood for “scurvy”
Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)
- scepter
scepter
59,569 corpus weight
- scorch
scorch
59,568 corpus weight
- scribble
scribble
59,567 corpus weight
- scurvy
scurvy
59,566 corpus weight
- searchlight
searchlight
59,565 corpus weight
- señor
señor
59,563 corpus weight
What this shows Bars show where “scurvy” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | scurvy |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | /ˈskɜːvi/ |
| Letters | 6 |
| Frequency rank | #40,435 |
| Misspellings tracked | 10 |
| Confusable pairs | 8 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “scurvy” sits in English frequency
A misspelling magnet
The generator records 10 spelling variants around scurvy (IPA /ˈskɜːvi/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #40,435 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 4 senses, so context still picks the gloss.
Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for scurvy, with forms such as "csurvy", "sccurvy", and "scruvy". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 8 confusable-pair relationships, "surly", "surry", "survey", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.
Etymologically, the entry records: The adjective is derived from Late Middle English scurvi, scurvy, variants of scurfi (“having scurf, scabby”), from scurf (“skin disease causing scabs or scales; flakes of skin that fall off due to a skin disease, etc.”) + -i (suffix forming adjectives). Sc… The correct English form is scurvy, spelled S-C-U-R-V-Y.
Definition
- 1Affected or covered with scurf (“skin disease causing flakes of skin to fall off”) or scabs; scurfy, scabby; also, of or relating to a skin disease causing scurf or to scurvy (noun noun sense 1).
- 2Of growths on plants: resembling scurf; scurfy.
- 3Of a person or thing: disgustingly mean; contemptible, despicable, low.
- 4Of the way someone is treated: poor, shabby.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how scurvy appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
Some wenches come vnlased, / Some hyswyues come vnbrased, / Wyth theyr naked pappes, / That flappes and flappes; / […] / A sorte of foule drabbes / All scuruy with scabbes: […]
The bran of VVheate boiled in ſharpe vineger, and rubbed vpon them that be ſcuruie and mangie, easeth the partie very much.
Etymology
The adjective is derived from Late Middle English scurvi, scurvy, variants of scurfi (“having scurf, scabby”), from scurf (“skin disease causing scabs or scales; flakes of skin that fall off due to a skin disease, etc.”) + -i (suffix forming adjectives). Scurf is derived from Old English scurf, from Proto-Germanic *skurf- (“to gnaw”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)ker- (“to cut off, sever; to divide, separate”). By surface analysis, scurf (“skin disease; flakes of skin that fall off due to a skin disease; crust-like formations on the skin”) + -y (suffix meaning ‘having the quality of’ forming adjectives). The noun is derived from the adjective. It was used to translate the similar-sounding Dutch scheurbuik, French scorbut, Middle Low German schorbūk (“scurvy (disease)”), etc.
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as:
- csurvy
- sccurvy
- scruvy
- scurrvy
- scurvvy
- scurvyy
- scuryv
- scuvry
- sscurvy
- sucrvy
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of scurvy - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.
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.
PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of September 3, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Similar English words by spelling shape
Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "scurvy", not the corpus desk frequency band.
Same letter count
Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).
Similar misspelling depth
Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (10 here; floor ≥5).
What to do next
You've looked up "scurvy". Here's where to go from here.
- "scurvy" maps to 8 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "surly". View pair
- 10 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
- Usage frequency rank #40,435 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
- Browse more English words in the "S" letter cohort. S–Z browse
- PlainSpell rotates a curated Word of the Day from the English corpus, a passive way to discover vocabulary. Word of the Day
PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.
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.