scythe

/ˈsaɪð/

//ˈsaɪð// noun

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

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

The verdict

“scythe” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #38,152. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#38,152
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
3
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An instrument for mowing grass, grain, etc. by hand, composed of a long, curving blade with a sharp concave edge, fastened to a long handle called a snath.

Corpus desk

Index EN-scythe · scythe · English

scythe · rank #38,152 · 10 variants · 3 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #38,152
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 3 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH scoff

Nearest frequency peer: scoff (-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 “scythe”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “scythe” 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).

scythe vs Smyth
50% similar
scythe vs soothe
67% similar
scythe vs Smythe
67% similar

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

Key facts for scythe
PropertyValue
Headwordscythe
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈsaɪð/
Letters6
Frequency rank#38,152
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs3
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “scythe”

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “scoff” (#38,151), “Searle” (#38,153), “Schengen” (#38,150). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “scythe” is #38,152. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around scythe (IPA /ˈsaɪð/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #38,152 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for scythe, with forms such as "csythe", "sccythe", and "sctyhe". 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 3 confusable-pair relationships, "Smyth", "soothe", "Smythe", a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English sythe, sithe, from Old English sīþe, sīgþe, sigdi (“sickle”), from Proto-West Germanic *sigiþi, from Proto-Germanic *sigiþiz, *sigiþō, derived from *seg- (“saw”), from Proto-Indo-European *sek- (“to cut”). Immediate Germanic cognates inc… The correct English form is scythe, spelled S-C-Y-T-H-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    An instrument for mowing grass, grain, etc. by hand, composed of a long, curving blade with a sharp concave edge, fastened to a long handle called a snath.
  2. 2
    A scythe-shaped blade attached to ancient war chariots.
  3. 3
    The tenth Lenormand card.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. And nothing 'gainst Time's scythe can make defence Save breed, to brave him when he takes thee hence.
  2. Early next morning the gudewife took a scythe on her shoulder, and went out in the fields with the hay-mowers to mow.

Etymology

From Middle English sythe, sithe, from Old English sīþe, sīgþe, sigdi (“sickle”), from Proto-West Germanic *sigiþi, from Proto-Germanic *sigiþiz, *sigiþō, derived from *seg- (“saw”), from Proto-Indo-European *sek- (“to cut”). Immediate Germanic cognates include Middle Low German sēgede, Dutch zicht, Icelandic sigð (all “sickle”). More distantly related with Dutch zeis, German Sense (both “scythe”). Also akin to English saw, which see. The silent c crept in during the early 15th century owing to folk-etymological association with Medieval Latin scissor (“tailor, carver”), from Latin scindō (“to cut, rend, split”). The verb, which was first used in the intransitive sense, is from the noun.

This word in other languages

guadaña(Español)faux(Français)Sense(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • csythe
  • sccythe
  • sctyhe
  • scyhte
  • scyteh
  • scythhe
  • scytthe
  • scyythe
  • sscythe
  • sycthe

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of scythe - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

csythe2sccythe1sctyhe2scyhte2scyteh2scythhe1scytthe1scyythe1
Edit distance from "scythe"

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 "scythe"?
"scythe" is spelled S-C-Y-T-H-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈsaɪð/.
What does "scythe" mean?
As a noun, "scythe" means: An instrument for mowing grass, grain, etc. by hand, composed of a long, curving blade with a sharp concave edge, fastened to a long handle called a snath.
What words are commonly confused with "scythe"?
"scythe" is commonly confused with "Smyth", "soothe", "Smythe". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "scythe"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "scythe" is /ˈsaɪð/. 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 "scythe"?
From Middle English sythe, sithe, from Old English sīþe, sīgþe, sigdi (“sickle”), from Proto-West Germanic *sigiþi, from Proto-Germanic *sigiþiz, *sigiþō, derived from *seg- (“saw”), from Proto-Indo-European *sek- (“to cut”). Immediate Germanic co... 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 "scythe", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Searle#38,153scarab#38,149sawing#38,148savour#38,147

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (10 here; floor ≥5).

rotunda10 variantsSmythe10 variantsTabitha10 variantstermite10 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list