thirst
/θɜːst/
"thirst" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“thirst” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #12,343. The variants make it a useful spelling check.
- #12,343
- frequency rank, English
- 3,151
- “T” headwords
- 10
- tracked misspellings
- 8
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A sensation of dryness in the throat associated with a craving for liquids, produced by deprivation of drink, or by some other cause (such as fear, excitement, etc.) which stops the secretion of th...
Corpus desk
Index EN-thirst · thirst · English
thirst · rank #12,343 · 10 variants · 8 confusables
- FREQ-MID #12,343
- LEN-LONG 6 letters
- VOW-1 1 vowel
- CONFUS-MID 8 pairs
- VAR-MID 10 variants
- BOOK-MID 3,151
- PHOTO-FINISH theoretically
Nearest frequency peer: theoretically (-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.
Frequency neighbourhood for “thirst”
Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)
- symptom
symptom
87,661 corpus weight
- thanked
thanked
87,660 corpus weight
- theoretical…
theoretically
87,659 corpus weight
- thirst
thirst
87,658 corpus weight
- transitional
transitional
87,657 corpus weight
- tuna
tuna
87,656 corpus weight
What this shows Bars show where “thirst” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | thirst |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /θɜːst/ |
| Letters | 6 |
| Frequency rank | #12,343 |
| Misspellings tracked | 10 |
| Confusable pairs | 8 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “thirst” sits in English frequency
A misspelling magnet
The generator records 10 spelling variants around thirst (IPA /θɜːst/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #12,343 among 3,151 “T” headwords. Wiktionary lists 4 senses, so context still picks the gloss.
Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for thirst, with forms such as "htirst", "thhirst", and "thirrst". 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 8 confusable-pair relationships, "this", "twist", "thirty", 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 thirst, thurst, from Old English þurst, from Proto-West Germanic *þurstu, from Proto-Germanic *þurstuz, from Proto-Indo-European *ters- (“dry”). Germanic cognates include Old High German thurst, Middle High German durst, German Durst, Ol… The correct English form is thirst, spelled T-H-I-R-S-T.
Definition
- 1A sensation of dryness in the throat associated with a craving for liquids, produced by deprivation of drink, or by some other cause (such as fear, excitement, etc.) which stops the secretion of the pharyngeal mucous membrane.
- 2The condition producing the sensation of thirst.
- 3A want and eager desire (for something); a craving or longing.
- 4Sexual lust.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how thirst appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
We developed a great thirst during our hike.
He had quite a thirst on and so headed to his favourite Dublin pub.
Etymology
From Middle English thirst, thurst, from Old English þurst, from Proto-West Germanic *þurstu, from Proto-Germanic *þurstuz, from Proto-Indo-European *ters- (“dry”). Germanic cognates include Old High German thurst, Middle High German durst, German Durst, Old Saxon thurst, Old Dutch thursti, Middle Dutch dorst, dorste, Dutch dorst, Old Norse þorsti (Swedish törst, Icelandic þorsti, Danish tørst, Norwegian tørst). Indo-European cognates include Ancient Greek τέρσομαι (térsomai), Albanian djersë (“sweat”), Sanskrit तृष्णा (tṛṣṇā, “desire; thirst”), Sanskrit तृष्यति (tṛ́ṣyati), Latin terra, Latin torridus.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as:
- htirst
- thhirst
- thirrst
- thirsst
- thirstt
- thirts
- thisrt
- thrist
- tihrst
- tthirst
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of thirst - 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.
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.
PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of September 3, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you spell "thirst"?
What does "thirst" mean?
What words are commonly confused with "thirst"?
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Similar English words by spelling shape
Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "thirst", not the corpus desk frequency band.
Same letter count
Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).
Similar misspelling depth
Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (10 here; floor ≥5).
What to do next
You've looked up "thirst". Here's where to go from here.
- "thirst" maps to 8 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "this". View pair
- 10 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
- Usage frequency rank #12,343 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
- Browse more English words in the "T" letter cohort. T–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.