thimble

/ˈθɪmb(ə)l/

//ˈθɪmb(ə)l// noun

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

"thimble" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“thimble” is uncommon English (frequency #51,446 among 3,151 “T” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#51,446
frequency rank, English
3,151
“T” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A pitted, now usually metal, cup-shaped cap worn on the tip of a finger, which is used in sewing to push the needle through material.

Corpus desk

Index EN-thimble · thimble · English

thimble · rank #51,446 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #51,446
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,151
  • PHOTO-FINISH Thessalonians

Nearest frequency peer: Thessalonians (-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.

Long-tail ranks near “thimble”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “thimble” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for thimble
PropertyValue
Headwordthimble
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈθɪmb(ə)l/
Letters7
Frequency rank#51,446
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “thimble” in English

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).thimblefalls in this rarity band:

#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. Rare peers in the same band: “Thessalonians” (#51,445), “thorp” (#51,447), “Theobald” (#51,444). Among 3,151 “T” headwords, “thimble” is #51,446. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

thimble is uncommon English at frequency #51,446 among 3,151 “T” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈθɪmb(ə)l/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 6 senses are on record.

No generated misspelling entries exist for thimble in our index, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: The noun is derived from Middle English thymbyll, thimel (“thimble”) [and other forms], from Old English þȳmel (“thimble, thumbstall; fingerstall”), then either: * from Old English þūma (“thumb”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *tewh₂- (“to swell”)) + … The correct English form is thimble, spelled T-H-I-M-B-L-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A pitted, now usually metal, cup-shaped cap worn on the tip of a finger, which is used in sewing to push the needle through material.
  2. 2
    As much as fills a thimble (sense 1); a thimbleful.
  3. 3
    An object which resembles a thimble (sense 1) in shape or size.
  4. 4
    An object which resembles a thimble (sense 1) in shape or size.
  5. 5
    A metal ring which a cable or rope intended for attaching to other things is looped around as a protection against chafing.
  6. 6
    A ring- or tube-shaped component such as a ferrule.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. She had worn a hole through her silver thimble, and wanted Owen to repair it.
  2. To relieve the stern in a measure from the great weight of the [diving-]bell, a short, strong mast was stepped in the usual place, and steeving forward; from its head to the head of the davit was a span, which set up with two thimbles [footnote: A sort of iron ring.] and a lanyard, and the whole was supported by a strong stay from the mast-head to the ste…

Etymology

The noun is derived from Middle English thymbyll, thimel (“thimble”) [and other forms], from Old English þȳmel (“thimble, thumbstall; fingerstall”), then either: * from Old English þūma (“thumb”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *tewh₂- (“to swell”)) + -el (suffix forming agent nouns and the names of instruments); or * from Proto-Germanic *þūmilaz (“thumb-covering, thumb-sheath”), from *þūmô (“thumb”) (ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European root mentioned above) + *-ilaz (suffix forming agent nouns). The English word is analysable as thumb + -le (suffix forming agent nouns), and is cognate with Dutch duimeling (“thumbstall”), German Däumling (“thumbstall”), German Low German Dümelke (“thumbstall”), Saterland Frisian Düümelke (“thumbstall”), Scots thummle, thumble (“thimble”). The verb is derived from the noun.

This word in other languages

dedal(Español)dé(Français)Fingerhut(Deutsch)

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 "thimble"?
"thimble" is spelled T-H-I-M-B-L-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈθɪmb(ə)l/.
What does "thimble" mean?
As a noun, "thimble" means: A pitted, now usually metal, cup-shaped cap worn on the tip of a finger, which is used in sewing to push the needle through material.
How do you pronounce "thimble"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "thimble" is /ˈθɪmb(ə)l/. 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 "thimble"?
The noun is derived from Middle English thymbyll, thimel (“thimble”) [and other forms], from Old English þȳmel (“thimble, thumbstall; fingerstall”), then either: * from Old English þūma (“thumb”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *tewh₂- (“to s... 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 "thimble", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

tootsie#51,453Tammany#51,434sweated#51,428tugboat#51,464

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list