selfhood

noun

"selfhood" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“selfhood” is uncommon English (frequency #99,834 among 6,566 “S” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#99,834
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - State of having a distinct identity, or being an individual distinct from others; individuality.

Corpus desk

Index EN-selfhood · selfhood · English

selfhood · rank #99,834 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #99,834
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH septicemia

Nearest frequency peer: septicemia (+2 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 “selfhood”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for selfhood
PropertyValue
Headwordselfhood
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters8
Frequency rank#99,834
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “selfhood” 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).selfhoodfalls 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: “septicemia” (#99,836), “sepulcher” (#99,837), “sealift” (#99,830). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “selfhood” is #99,834. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

selfhood is uncommon English at frequency #99,834 among 6,566 “S” headwords, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

selfhood has no tracked misspelling variants, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable English rules. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Etymologically, the entry records: From self + -hood. The correct English form is selfhood, spelled S-E-L-F-H-O-O-D.

Definition

  1. 1
    State of having a distinct identity, or being an individual distinct from others; individuality.
  2. 2
    The fully developed self; one's personality, character.
  3. 3
    The quality of being self-centered or egocentric; selfishness.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. Indeed, while geography is neither a key dimension of identity nor its determinant, it is one of the most important categories through which nationhood can be explored and articulated. It both grounds a sense of national selfhood and gives it a framework through which a continuous shaping of identity can "take place."

Etymology

From self + -hood.

Synonyms

This word in other languages

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 "selfhood"?
"selfhood" is spelled S-E-L-F-H-O-O-D.
What does "selfhood" mean?
As a noun, "selfhood" means: State of having a distinct identity, or being an individual distinct from others; individuality.
What is the origin of the word "selfhood"?
From self + -hood. 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 "selfhood", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list