strut

/stɹʌt/

//stɹʌt// verb

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

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

The verdict

“strut” has 7 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #23,692. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#23,692
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
7
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Of a peacock or other fowl: to stand or walk stiffly, with the tail erect and spread out.

Corpus desk

Index EN-strut · strut · English

strut · rank #23,692 · 7 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #23,692
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 7 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH storming

Nearest frequency peer: storming (-2 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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “strut”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “strut” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

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).

strut vs Stu
40% similar
strut vs stud
60% similar
strut vs stun
60% similar

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

Key facts for strut
PropertyValue
Headwordstrut
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/stɹʌt/
Letters5
Frequency rank#23,692
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “strut” sits in English frequency

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).strutlands 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 “storming” (#23,690), “swagger” (#23,694), “stepmother” (#23,689). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 7 spelling variants around strut (IPA /stɹʌt/), averb. Corpus frequency is #23,692 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 5 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for strut, with forms such as "srtut", "sstrut", and "strrut". 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, "Stu", "stud", "stun", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: The verb is derived from Middle English strouten, struten (“to bulge, swell; to protrude, stick out; to bluster, threaten; to object forcefully; to create a disturbance; to fight; to display one's clothes in a proud or vain manner”) [and other forms], from … The correct English form is strut, spelled S-T-R-U-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    Of a peacock or other fowl: to stand or walk stiffly, with the tail erect and spread out.
  2. 2
    To walk haughtily or proudly with one's head held high.
  3. 3
    To walk across or on (a stage or other place) haughtily or proudly.
  4. 4
    Often followed by out: to protuberate or stick out due to being full or swollen; to bulge, to swell.
  5. 5
    Often followed by out: to cause (something) to bulge, protrude, or swell.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Hark, hark, I heare, the ſtraine of ſtrutting Chanticlere cry cockadidle-dowe.
  2. The pheasant strutteth about in the midst of flowers; / The turtle-dove cooeth, and the nightingale warbleth from the cypress.

Etymology

The verb is derived from Middle English strouten, struten (“to bulge, swell; to protrude, stick out; to bluster, threaten; to object forcefully; to create a disturbance; to fight; to display one's clothes in a proud or vain manner”) [and other forms], from Old English strūtian (“to project out; stand out stiffly; to exert oneself, struggle”), from Proto-Germanic *strūtōną, *strūtijaną (“to be puffed up, swell”), from Proto-Indo-European *streudʰ- (“rigid, stiff”), from *(s)ter- (“firm; strong; rigid, stiff”). The English word is cognate with Danish strutte (“to bulge, bristle”), Low German strutt (“stiff”), Middle High German striuzen (“to bristle; to ruffle”) (modern German strotzen (“to bristle up”), sträußen (obsolete, except in Alemannic)); and compare Gothic 𐌸𐍂𐌿𐍄𐍃𐍆𐌹𐌻𐌻 (þrutsfill, “leprosy”), Old Norse þrútinn (“swollen”). The noun is derived from the verb. Noun sense 2 (“instrument for adjusting the pleats of a ruff”) appears to be due to a misreading of a 16th-century work which used the word stroout (strouted (“caused (something) to bulge, protrude, or swell; strutted”)).

This word in other languages

contonearse(Español)parader(Français)herumstolzieren(Deutsch)pavonear(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • srtut
  • sstrut
  • strrut
  • strtu
  • strutt
  • sttrut
  • tsrut

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

srtut2sstrut1strrut1strtu2strutt1sttrut1tsrut2
Edit distance from "strut"

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 "strut"?
"strut" is spelled S-T-R-U-T. The IPA pronunciation is /stɹʌt/.
What does "strut" mean?
As a verb, "strut" means: Of a peacock or other fowl: to stand or walk stiffly, with the tail erect and spread out.
What words are commonly confused with "strut"?
"strut" is commonly confused with "Stu", "stud", "stun". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "strut"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "strut" is /stɹʌt/. 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 "strut"?
The verb is derived from Middle English strouten, struten (“to bulge, swell; to protrude, stick out; to bluster, threaten; to object forcefully; to create a disturbance; to fight; to display one's clothes in a proud or vain manner”) [and other for... 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 "strut", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

swirl#23,695theta#23,699thong#23,701Ringo#23,657

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (7 here; floor ≥5).

zoned7 variantsAnwar7 variantsPixar7 variantspitted7 variants

What to do next

You've looked up "strut". Here's where to go from here.

  • "strut" maps to 20 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "Stu". View pair
  • 7 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
  • Usage frequency rank #23,692 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more English words in the "S" letter cohort. S–Z browse
  • PlainSpell rotates a curated Word of the Day from the English corpus, a passive way to discover vocabulary. Word of the Day

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

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