spindrift
/ˈspɪndɹɪft/
"spindrift" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“spindrift” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 9
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Sea spray (clouds of water droplets) blown from the tops of waves by the wind and whipped along the surface of the sea.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | spindrift |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈspɪndɹɪft/ |
| Letters | 9 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “spindrift” sits in English frequency
Rare enough to double-check
spindrift is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈspɪndɹɪft/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.
spindrift doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.
Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Scots spindrift; further etymology uncertain. The Oxford English Dictionary suggests it is a variant of spoondrift (archaic), apparently due to the pronunciation of this word in southwestern Scotland, which is derived from spoon + drift (“mass… The correct English form is spindrift, spelled S-P-I-N-D-R-I-F-T.
Definition
- 1Sea spray (clouds of water droplets) blown from the tops of waves by the wind and whipped along the surface of the sea.
- 2Clouds of sand, snow, etc., whipped along the ground by the wind.
Etymology
Borrowed from Scots spindrift; further etymology uncertain. The Oxford English Dictionary suggests it is a variant of spoondrift (archaic), apparently due to the pronunciation of this word in southwestern Scotland, which is derived from spoon + drift (“mass of matter driven or forced onward together in a body, etc., especially by wind or water”); spoon is a variant of spoom (“to sail briskly with the wind astern, with or without sails hoisted”). However, this is doubted by the Scottish National Dictionary because spoondrift is attested later than spindrift and it seems unlikely that the Scots spelling would have superseded the English one, and because the early use of the Scots word in the form spenedrift by James Melville (1556–1614) is unlikely to have derived from spoondrift. The word was popularized in English from the late 19th century by its use in the novels of the Scottish-born author William Black (1841–1898): see, for example, the 1878 quotation.
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). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Using “spindrift”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is S-P-I-N-D-R-I-F-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈspɪndɹɪft/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
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.