smoky

/ˈsmoʊki/

//ˈsmoʊki// adj

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

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

The verdict

“smoky” has 8 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #18,957. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#18,957
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Filled with smoke.

Corpus desk

Index EN-smoky · smoky · English

smoky · rank #18,957 · 8 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #18,957
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH slogans

Nearest frequency peer: slogans (-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 “smoky”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “smoky” 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).

smoky vs soy
60% similar
smoky vs Sony
40% similar
smoky vs sook
60% similar

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

Key facts for smoky
PropertyValue
Headwordsmoky
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈsmoʊki/
Letters5
Frequency rank#18,957
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “smoky”

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).smokylands here:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “slogans” (#18,956), “siemens” (#18,954), “spade” (#18,960). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “smoky” is #18,957. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around smoky (IPA /ˈsmoʊki/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #18,957 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 13 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for smoky, with forms such as "msoky", "smkoy", and "smmoky". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "soy", "Sony", "sook", and more, 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 smoky, smokie, equivalent to smoke + -y. The correct English form is smoky, spelled S-M-O-K-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    Filled with smoke.
  2. 2
    Filled with smoke.
  3. 3
    Giving off smoke.
  4. 4
    Of a colour or colour pattern similar to that of smoke.
  5. 5
    Having a flavour or odour like smoke; flavoured with smoke.
  6. 6
    Resembling or composed of smoke.
  7. 7
    Blackened by smoke.
  8. 8
    Having a deep, raspy quality, often as a result of smoking tobacco.
  9. 9
    Attractive in a sensual way; sultry.
  10. 10
    Having a dark, thick, bass sound.
  11. 11
    Giving off steam or vapour.
  12. 12
    Obscuring or insubstantial like smoke.
  13. 13
    Suspicious; open to suspicion; jealous.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. a smoky cabin
  2. Some sate turning of spits, and the place being all smoaky, made me thinke on hell, for the ioynts of meat lay as if they had bene broyling in the infernall fier […]

Etymology

From Middle English smoky, smokie, equivalent to smoke + -y.

Synonyms

fumidfumous

This word in other languages

ahumado(Español)enfumé(Français)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • msoky
  • smkoy
  • smmoky
  • smokky
  • smokyy
  • smoyk
  • somky
  • ssmoky

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

msoky2smkoy2smmoky1smokky1smokyy1smoyk2somky2ssmoky1
Edit distance from "smoky"

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 "smoky"?
"smoky" is spelled S-M-O-K-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈsmoʊki/.
What does "smoky" mean?
As an adjective, "smoky" means: Filled with smoke.
What words are commonly confused with "smoky"?
"smoky" is commonly confused with "soy", "Sony", "sook". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "smoky"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "smoky" is /ˈsmoʊki/. 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 "smoky"?
From Middle English smoky, smokie, equivalent to smoke + -y. 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 "smoky", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

spade#18,960shiva#18,952serie#18,950vowel#18,991

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

saline8 variantstilted8 variantsweirdo8 variantsplush8 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list