threadbare

/ˈθɹɛdbɛə/

//ˈθɹɛdbɛə// adj

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

"threadbare" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“threadbare” is uncommon English (frequency #57,770 among 3,151 “T” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#57,770
frequency rank, English
3,151
“T” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Of cloth, clothing, furnishings, etc.: frayed and worn to an extent that the nap is damaged and the warp and weft threads show; shabby, worn-out.

Corpus desk

Index EN-threadbare · threadbare · English

threadbare · rank #57,770 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #57,770
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,151
  • PHOTO-FINISH Tir

Nearest frequency peer: Tir (+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.

Long-tail ranks near “threadbare”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for threadbare
PropertyValue
Headwordthreadbare
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈθɹɛdbɛə/
Letters10
Frequency rank#57,770
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “threadbare” 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).threadbarefalls 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: “Tir” (#57,772), “theatrically” (#57,767), “testis” (#57,765). Among 3,151 “T” headwords, “threadbare” is #57,770. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

threadbare is uncommon English at frequency #57,770 among 3,151 “T” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed /ˈθɹɛdbɛə/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 5 senses are on record.

threadbare has no tracked misspelling variants, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable English rules. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: PIE word *bʰosós From Middle English thred-bar, thred-bare (“of cloth, clothing, etc.: worn to such an extent that the warp and weft threads show, shabby, worn-out; (figurative) inadequate, poor”) [and other forms], from thred (“piece of textile twine”) (f… The correct English form is threadbare, spelled T-H-R-E-A-D-B-A-R-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Of cloth, clothing, furnishings, etc.: frayed and worn to an extent that the nap is damaged and the warp and weft threads show; shabby, worn-out.
  2. 2
    In poor condition; damaged, shabby; also, poorly equipped or provided for, inadequate, meagre, scanty.
  3. 3
    Of an argument, excuse, etc.: used so often that it is no longer effective or interesting; banal, clichéd, trite.
  4. 4
    An argument or assertion with little in the way of substance or supporting evidence.
  5. 5
    Of a person: wearing clothes of threadbare (sense 1) material; hence, impoverished, poor.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. His life vvas nigh vnto deaths dore yplaſte, / And thred-bare cote, and cobled ſhoes hee vvare, […]
  2. VVill any Freedom here from you be born, / VVhoſe Cloaths are thred-bare, and vvhoſe Cloaks are torn?

Etymology

PIE word *bʰosós From Middle English thred-bar, thred-bare (“of cloth, clothing, etc.: worn to such an extent that the warp and weft threads show, shabby, worn-out; (figurative) inadequate, poor”) [and other forms], from thred (“piece of textile twine”) (from Old English þrǣd (“thread”), from Proto-Germanic *þrēduz (“thread; twisted fibre”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *terh₁- (“to drill, pierce; to rub; to turn, twist”)) + bar, bare (“naked, unclothed, bare; not covered”) (from Old English bær (“naked, bare; unconcealed”), ultimately from Proto-Germanic *bazaz (“naked, bare”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰosós (“bare; barefoot”)). The English word is analysable as thread + bare.

This word in other languages

raído(Español)élimé(Français)fadenscheinig(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 "threadbare"?
"threadbare" is spelled T-H-R-E-A-D-B-A-R-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈθɹɛdbɛə/.
What does "threadbare" mean?
As an adjective, "threadbare" means: Of cloth, clothing, furnishings, etc.: frayed and worn to an extent that the nap is damaged and the warp and weft threads show; shabby, worn-out.
How do you pronounce "threadbare"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "threadbare" is /ˈθɹɛdbɛə/. 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 "threadbare"?
PIE word *bʰosós From Middle English thred-bar, thred-bare (“of cloth, clothing, etc.: worn to such an extent that the warp and weft threads show, shabby, worn-out; (figurative) inadequate, poor”) [and other forms], from thred (“piece of textile ... 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 "threadbare", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 10 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

temporally#57,764trilateral#57,783unshakable#57,802Waterville#57,813

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list