spur

/spɜː/

//spɜː// noun

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

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

The verdict

“spur” has 6 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #11,976. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#11,976
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A rigid implement, often roughly y-shaped, that is fixed to one's heel for the purpose of prodding a horse. Often worn by, and emblematic of, the cowboy or the knight.

Corpus desk

Index EN-spur · spur · English

spur · rank #11,976 · 6 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #11,976
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 6 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH Stevie

Nearest frequency peer: Stevie (+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 “spur”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “spur” 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).

spur vs su
50% similar
spur vs sun
50% similar
spur vs sub
50% similar

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

Key facts for spur
PropertyValue
Headwordspur
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/spɜː/
Letters4
Frequency rank#11,976
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “spur”

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).spurlands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “Stevie” (#11,977), “storytelling” (#11,978), “Spears” (#11,973). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “spur” is #11,976. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 6 spelling variants around spur (IPA /spɜː/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #11,976 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 19 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for spur, with forms such as "psur", "sppur", and "spru". 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, "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 spure, spore, from Old English spora, spura, from Proto-West Germanic *spurō, from Proto-Germanic *spurô, from Proto-Indo-European *sperH- (“to kick”). The correct English form is spur, spelled S-P-U-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    A rigid implement, often roughly y-shaped, that is fixed to one's heel for the purpose of prodding a horse. Often worn by, and emblematic of, the cowboy or the knight.
  2. 2
    A jab given with the spurs.
  3. 3
    Anything that inspires or motivates, as a spur does a horse.
  4. 4
    An appendage or spike pointing rearward, near the foot, for instance that of a rooster.
  5. 5
    Any protruding part connected at one end, for instance a highway that extends from another highway into a city.
  6. 6
    Roots, tree roots.
  7. 7
    A mountain that shoots from another mountain or range and extends some distance in a lateral direction, or at right angles.
  8. 8
    A spiked iron worn by seamen upon the bottom of the boot, to enable them to stand upon the carcass of a whale to strip off the blubber.
  9. 9
    A brace strengthening a post and some connected part, such as a rafter or crossbeam; a strut.
  10. 10
    The short wooden buttress of a post.
  11. 11
    A projection from the round base of a column, occupying the angle of a square plinth upon which the base rests, or bringing the bottom bed of the base to a nearly square form. It is generally carved in leafage.
  12. 12
    Ergotized rye or other grain.
  13. 13
    A wall in a fortification that crosses a part of a rampart and joins to an inner wall.
  14. 14
    A piece of timber fixed on the bilgeways before launching, having the upper ends bolted to the vessel's side.
  15. 15
    A curved piece of timber serving as a half to support the deck where a whole beam cannot be placed.
  16. 16
    A branch of a vein.
  17. 17
    A very short branch line of a railway line.
  18. 18
    A short branch road of a motorway, freeway or major road.
  19. 19
    A short thin side shoot from a branch, especially one that bears fruit or, in conifers, the shoots that bear the leaves.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Lives he, good uncle? thrice within this hour I saw him down; thrice up again, and fighting; From helmet to the spur all blood he was.
  2. Tvvo ſorts of ſpurs ſeem to have been in uſe about the time of the Conqueſt, one called a pryck, having only a ſingle point like the gaffle of a fighting cock; the other conſiſting of a number of points of a conſiderable length, radiating from and revolving on a center, thence named the rouelle or vvheel ſpur.

Etymology

From Middle English spure, spore, from Old English spora, spura, from Proto-West Germanic *spurō, from Proto-Germanic *spurô, from Proto-Indo-European *sperH- (“to kick”).

This word in other languages

espuela(Español)éperon(Français)Sporn(Deutsch)espora(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • psur
  • sppur
  • spru
  • spurr
  • sspur
  • supr

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of spur - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

psur2sppur1spru2spurr1sspur1supr2
Edit distance from "spur"

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 "spur"?
"spur" is spelled S-P-U-R. The IPA pronunciation is /spɜː/.
What does "spur" mean?
As a noun, "spur" means: A rigid implement, often roughly y-shaped, that is fixed to one's heel for the purpose of prodding a horse. Often worn by, and emblematic of, the cowboy or the knight.
What words are commonly confused with "spur"?
"spur" 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 "spur"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "spur" is /spɜː/. 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 "spur"?
From Middle English spure, spore, from Old English spora, spura, from Proto-West Germanic *spurō, from Proto-Germanic *spurô, from Proto-Indo-European *sperH- (“to kick”). 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 "spur", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 4 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Tara#11,985Theo#11,987tilt#11,988veil#11,994

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (6 here; floor ≥5).

booze6 variantspint6 variantsClare6 variantsoxide6 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list