spud

/spʌd/

//spʌd// noun

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

"spud" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“spud” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #42,419 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#42,419
frequency rank, English
4
letters
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A potato.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

spud vs su
50% similar
spud vs sun
50% similar
spud vs sub
50% similar

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

Key facts for spud
PropertyValue
Headwordspud
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/spʌd/
Letters4
Frequency rank#42,419
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “spud” sits in English frequency

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for spud is 4 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /spʌd/. Corpus data places it at rank #42,419 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 12 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for spud, with forms such as "psud", "spdu", and "sppud". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "su", "sun", "sub", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English spudde (“small knife”). Origin unknown; probably related to Danish spyd, Old Norse spjót (“spear”), German Spieß (“spear; spike; skewer”). Compare English spit (“sharp, pointed rod”). The use of the term for a potato perhaps first appear… The correct English form is spud, spelled S-P-U-D.

Definition

  1. 1
    A potato.
  2. 2
    A hole in a sock.
  3. 3
    A type of short nut (fastener) threaded on both ends.
  4. 4
    Anything short and thick.
  5. 5
    A piece of dough boiled in fat.
  6. 6
    A testicle.
  7. 7
    A dagger.
  8. 8
    A digging fork with three broad prongs.
  9. 9
    A tool, similar to a spade, used for digging out weeds etc.
  10. 10
    A barking spud; a long-handled tool for removing bark from logs.
  11. 11
    A movable post through a sleeve in the hull of a work barge to anchor it to the bottom of a body of water.
  12. 12
    A short central rod in a lighting fixture, for attachment to the light.

Etymology

From Middle English spudde (“small knife”). Origin unknown; probably related to Danish spyd, Old Norse spjót (“spear”), German Spieß (“spear; spike; skewer”). Compare English spit (“sharp, pointed rod”). The use of the term for a potato perhaps first appeared in New Zealand and Australian dialect and slang.

This word in other languages

patate(Français)Kartoffel(Deutsch)batata(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: psud,spdu,sppud,spudd,sspud,supd

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of spud - 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.

psud2spdu2sppud1spudd1sspud1supd2
Edit distance from "spud"

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 "spud"?
"spud" is spelled S-P-U-D. The IPA pronunciation is /spʌd/.
What does "spud" mean?
As a noun, "spud" means: A potato.
What words are commonly confused with "spud"?
"spud" is commonly confused with "su", "sun", "sub". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "spud"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "spud" is /spʌd/. 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 "spud"?
From Middle English spudde (“small knife”). Origin unknown; probably related to Danish spyd, Old Norse spjót (“spear”), German Spieß (“spear; spike; skewer”). Compare English spit (“sharp, pointed rod”). The use of the term for a potato perhaps fi... 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.

Using “spud”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is S-P-U-D - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /spʌd/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “su” - see the side-by-side comparison. spud vs su
  • 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list