shudder

/ˈʃʌd.ə/

//ˈʃʌd.ə// verb

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

"shudder" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“shudder” has 9 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #25,205. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#25,205
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
9
tracked misspellings
8
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To shake nervously, often from fear or horror.

Corpus desk

Index EN-shudder · shudder · English

shudder · rank #25,205 · 9 variants · 8 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #25,205
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 8 pairs
  • VAR-MID 9 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH shrewd

Nearest frequency peer: shrewd (-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 “shudder”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “shudder” 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).

shudder vs sudden
71% similar
shudder vs shutter
71% similar
shudder vs studded
71% similar

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

Key facts for shudder
PropertyValue
Headwordshudder
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ˈʃʌd.ə/
Letters7
Frequency rank#25,205
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs8
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “shudder”

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).shudderlands here:

#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. Same rarity band neighbours include “shrewd” (#25,204), “shunned” (#25,206), “shirtless” (#25,203). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “shudder” is #25,205. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 9 spelling variants around shudder (IPA /ˈʃʌd.ə/), averb. Corpus frequency is #25,205 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for shudder, with forms such as "hsudder", "shduder", and "shhudder". 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 8 confusable-pair relationships, "sudden", "shutter", "studded", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English schoderen, from Middle Dutch schudderen and/or Middle Low German schodderen, iterative forms of the verb at hand in Dutch schudden, Low German schüdden (both “to shake”), German schütten (“to pour”), from Proto-Germanic *skudjaną, from P… The correct English form is shudder, spelled S-H-U-D-D-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    To shake nervously, often from fear or horror.
  2. 2
    To vibrate jerkily.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. On seeing the spider under his pillow, John shuddered.
  2. VVreath'd vp in fatall folds iuſt in his way, / The feare where of doth make him ſhake, & ſhudder, […]

Etymology

From Middle English schoderen, from Middle Dutch schudderen and/or Middle Low German schodderen, iterative forms of the verb at hand in Dutch schudden, Low German schüdden (both “to shake”), German schütten (“to pour”), from Proto-Germanic *skudjaną, from Proto-Indo-European *skewdʰ-. From Low German are also borrowed German schaudern (“to shudder”), Danish skudre.

Synonyms

palpitateshivershakequakeflutterjiggleshakewiggle

This word in other languages

temblar(Español)frissonner(Français)schaudern(Deutsch)tremer(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • hsudder
  • shduder
  • shhudder
  • shudderr
  • shuddre
  • shudedr
  • shuder
  • sshudder
  • suhdder

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of shudder - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

hsudder2shduder2shhudder1shudderr1shuddre2shudedr2shuder1sshudder1
Edit distance from "shudder"

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 "shudder"?
"shudder" is spelled S-H-U-D-D-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈʃʌd.ə/.
What does "shudder" mean?
As a verb, "shudder" means: To shake nervously, often from fear or horror.
What words are commonly confused with "shudder"?
"shudder" is commonly confused with "sudden", "shutter", "studded". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "shudder"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "shudder" is /ˈʃʌd.ə/. 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 "shudder"?
From Middle English schoderen, from Middle Dutch schudderen and/or Middle Low German schodderen, iterative forms of the verb at hand in Dutch schudden, Low German schüdden (both “to shake”), German schütten (“to pour”), from Proto-Germanic *skudja... 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 "shudder", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

shunned#25,206smuggle#25,210paddock#25,161vetting#25,250

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (9 here; floor ≥5).

slalom9 variantssolder9 variantsSanjay9 variantssprout9 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list