thin

/θɪn/

//θɪn// adj

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

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

The verdict

“thin” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #3,200 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.

#3,200
frequency rank, English
4
letters
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Having little thickness or extent from one surface to its opposite.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

thin vs ti
50% similar
thin vs TN
0% similar
thin vs tip
50% similar

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

Key facts for thin
PropertyValue
Headwordthin
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/θɪn/
Letters4
Frequency rank#3,200
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “thin” 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). thin 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 thin is 4 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /θɪn/. Corpus data places it at rank #3,200 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 10 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 thin, with forms such as "htin", "thhin", and "thinn". 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, "ti", "TN", "tip", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English thinne, thünne, thenne, from Old English þynne, from Proto-West Germanic *þunnī, from Proto-Germanic *þunnuz (“thin”) – compare *þanjaną (“to stretch, spread out”) – from Proto-Indo-European *ténh₂us (“thin”), from *ten- (“to stretch”). … The correct English form is thin, spelled T-H-I-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    Having little thickness or extent from one surface to its opposite.
  2. 2
    Very narrow in all diameters; having a cross section that is small in all directions.
  3. 3
    Having little body fat or flesh; slim; slender; lean; gaunt.
  4. 4
    Of low viscosity or low specific gravity.
  5. 5
    Scarce; not close, crowded, or numerous; not filling the space.
  6. 6
    Describing a poorly played golf shot where the ball is struck by the bottom part of the club head. See fat, shank, toe.
  7. 7
    Lacking body or volume; small; feeble; not full.
  8. 8
    Slight; small; slender; flimsy; superficial; inadequate; not sufficient for a covering.
  9. 9
    Of a route: relatively little used.
  10. 10
    Poor; scanty; without money or success.

Etymology

From Middle English thinne, thünne, thenne, from Old English þynne, from Proto-West Germanic *þunnī, from Proto-Germanic *þunnuz (“thin”) – compare *þanjaną (“to stretch, spread out”) – from Proto-Indo-European *ténh₂us (“thin”), from *ten- (“to stretch”). Cognate with German dünn, Dutch dun, West Frisian tin, Icelandic þunnur, Danish tynd, Swedish tunn, Latin tenuis, Irish tanaí, Welsh tenau, Latvian tievs, Polish cienki, Russian тонкий (tonkij), Sanskrit तनु (tanú, “thin”), Persian تنگ (tang, “narrow”). Doublet of tenuis. Also related to tenuous.

Synonyms

narrownarrowfinereedyskinnyslenderslimsveltewaifishscrawnyrunnywateryrunnyspaced outsparsediffusescantscarceslight

Antonyms

thick

This word in other languages

fino(Español)mince(Français)dünn(Deutsch)ralo(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: htin,thhin,thinn,thni,tihn,tthin

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

htin2thhin1thinn1thni2tihn2tthin1
Edit distance from "thin"

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 "thin"?
"thin" is spelled T-H-I-N. The IPA pronunciation is /θɪn/.
What does "thin" mean?
As an adjective, "thin" means: Having little thickness or extent from one surface to its opposite.
What words are commonly confused with "thin"?
"thin" is commonly confused with "ti", "TN", "tip". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "thin"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "thin" is /θɪn/. 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 "thin"?
From Middle English thinne, thünne, thenne, from Old English þynne, from Proto-West Germanic *þunnī, from Proto-Germanic *þunnuz (“thin”) – compare *þanjaną (“to stretch, spread out”) – from Proto-Indo-European *ténh₂us (“thin”), from *ten- (“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.

Using “thin”

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

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