thunk

/θʌŋk/

//θʌŋk// verb

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

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

The verdict

“thunk” has 8 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #47,382. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#47,382
frequency rank, English
3,151
“T” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - past participle of think

Corpus desk

Index EN-thunk · thunk · English

thunk · rank #47,382 · 8 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #47,382
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,151
  • PHOTO-FINISH Thule

Nearest frequency peer: Thule (-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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “thunk”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “thunk” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

thunk vs tun
60% similar
thunk vs thus
60% similar
thunk vs tune
60% similar

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

Key facts for thunk
PropertyValue
Headwordthunk
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/θʌŋk/
Letters5
Frequency rank#47,382
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “thunk”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).thunklands here:

#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. Same rarity band neighbours include “Thule” (#47,381), “Tiber” (#47,383), “Tigger” (#47,384). Among 3,151 “T” headwords, “thunk” is #47,382. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around thunk (IPA /θʌŋk/), averb. Corpus frequency is #47,382 among 3,151 “T” headwords. Dominant gloss: "past participle of think".

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for thunk, with forms such as "htunk", "thhunk", and "thnuk". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "tun", "thus", "tune", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: By analogy with past participles ending in "-unk", such as drunk and sunk. The correct English form is thunk, spelled T-H-U-N-K.

Definition

  1. 1
    past participle of think

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Who would have thunk those guys would have a problem with a little lie?
  2. A skunk sat on a stump and thunk the stump stunk, but the stump thunk that the skunk stunk.

Etymology

By analogy with past participles ending in "-unk", such as drunk and sunk.

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • htunk
  • thhunk
  • thnuk
  • thukn
  • thunkk
  • thunnk
  • tthunk
  • tuhnk

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of thunk - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

htunk2thhunk1thnuk2thukn2thunkk1thunnk1tthunk1tuhnk2
Edit distance from "thunk"

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 "thunk"?
"thunk" is spelled T-H-U-N-K. The IPA pronunciation is /θʌŋk/.
What does "thunk" mean?
As a verb, "thunk" means: past participle of think
What words are commonly confused with "thunk"?
"thunk" is commonly confused with "tun", "thus", "tune". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "thunk"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "thunk" is /θʌŋk/. 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 "thunk"?
By analogy with past participles ending in "-unk", such as drunk and sunk. 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 "thunk", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Thule#47,381Tiber#47,383tints#47,385tater#47,371

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

tupelo8 variantsvizier8 variantssiesta8 variantsscruff8 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list