thigh

/θaɪ/

//θaɪ// noun

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

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

The verdict

“thigh” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #10,781 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#10,781
frequency rank, English
5
letters
8
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The upper leg of a human, between the hip and the knee.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

thigh vs tig
60% similar
thigh vs this
60% similar
thigh vs thin
60% similar

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

Key facts for thigh
PropertyValue
Headwordthigh
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/θaɪ/
Letters5
Frequency rank#10,781
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “thigh” 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). thigh 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 thigh is 5 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /θaɪ/. Corpus data places it at rank #10,781 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for thigh, with forms such as "htigh", "thgih", and "thhigh". 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, "tig", "this", "thin", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English thigh, thegh, thiȝ, theȝhe, þigh, þyȝh, from Old English þēoh, þīoh, from Proto-West Germanic *þeuh, from Proto-Germanic *þeuhą, from Proto-Indo-European *tewk-. See also West Frisian tsjea, Dutch dij, Middle High German diech, Icelandic… The correct English form is thigh, spelled T-H-I-G-H.

Definition

  1. 1
    The upper leg of a human, between the hip and the knee.
  2. 2
    That part of the leg of vertebrates (or sometimes other animals) which corresponds to the human thigh in position or function; the tibia of a horse, the tarsus of a bird; the third leg-section of an insect.

Etymology

From Middle English thigh, thegh, thiȝ, theȝhe, þigh, þyȝh, from Old English þēoh, þīoh, from Proto-West Germanic *þeuh, from Proto-Germanic *þeuhą, from Proto-Indo-European *tewk-. See also West Frisian tsjea, Dutch dij, Middle High German diech, Icelandic þjó; also Irish tóin (“hind, rump”), Lithuanian táukas (“fat”), Russian тук (tuk, “animal fat”).

This word in other languages

muslo(Español)cuisse(Français)Oberschenkel(Deutsch)coxa(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: htigh,thgih,thhigh,thiggh,thighh,thihg,tihgh,tthigh

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

htigh2thgih2thhigh1thiggh1thighh1thihg2tihgh2tthigh1
Edit distance from "thigh"

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 "thigh"?
"thigh" is spelled T-H-I-G-H. The IPA pronunciation is /θaɪ/.
What does "thigh" mean?
As a noun, "thigh" means: The upper leg of a human, between the hip and the knee.
What words are commonly confused with "thigh"?
"thigh" is commonly confused with "tig", "this", "thin". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "thigh"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "thigh" is /θaɪ/. 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 "thigh"?
From Middle English thigh, thegh, thiȝ, theȝhe, þigh, þyȝh, from Old English þēoh, þīoh, from Proto-West Germanic *þeuh, from Proto-Germanic *þeuhą, from Proto-Indo-European *tewk-. See also West Frisian tsjea, Dutch dij, Middle High German diech,... 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 “thigh”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is T-H-I-G-H - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /θaɪ/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “tig” - see the side-by-side comparison. thigh vs tig
  • 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