toe

/təʊ/

//təʊ// noun

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

"toe" is a 3-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“toe” sits in 20 confusable pairs (corpus #6,424) as a noun. The look-alike neighbours are the real trap.

#6,424
frequency rank, English
3,151
“T” headwords
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Each of the five digits on the end of the human foot.

Corpus desk

Index EN-toe · toe · English

toe · rank #6,424 · 0 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #6,424
  • LEN-MID 3 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,151
  • PHOTO-FINISH testament

Nearest frequency peer: testament (-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 “toe”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “toe” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

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).

toe vs TV
0% similar
toe vs TX
0% similar
toe vs Tu
0% similar

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

Key facts for toe
PropertyValue
Headwordtoe
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/təʊ/
Letters3
Frequency rank#6,424
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “toe” 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). toe lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Easy to mix with look-alikes

The spelling risk for toe is neighbouring look-alikes ("TV", "TX", …), not just typos; it is anoun pronounced /təʊ/. Frequency #6,424 among 3,151 “T” headwords. 14 recorded senses keep meaning in play.

No generated misspelling entries exist for toe in our index, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "TV", "TX", "Tu", 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 to, from Old English tā, (Mercian) tāhe, from Proto-West Germanic *taihā, from Proto-Germanic *taihwǭ, from *tīhwaną (“to show, announce”), from Proto-Indo-European *deyḱ- (“to show”). See also Dutch teen, German Zehe, Danish tå, Swedish… The correct English form is toe, spelled T-O-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Each of the five digits on the end of the human foot.
  2. 2
    The equivalent part in an animal.
  3. 3
    That part of a shoe or sock covering the toe.
  4. 4
    Something resembling a toe, especially at the bottom or extreme end of something.
  5. 5
    An advanced form of ballet primarily performed by women, wearing pointe shoes.
  6. 6
    An alignment of the wheels of a road vehicle, either positive (toe in), meaning the wheels are closer together at the front than at the back, or negative (toe out), the other way round.
  7. 7
    The journal, or pivot, at the lower end of a revolving shaft or spindle, which rests in a step.
  8. 8
    A lateral projection at one end, or between the ends, of a piece, such as a rod or bolt, by means of which it is moved.
  9. 9
    A projection from the periphery of a revolving piece, acting as a cam to lift another piece.
  10. 10
    The long side of an angled cut.
  11. 11
    The upper end of the bit (cutting edge) of an axehead; as opposed to the heel (lower end).
  12. 12
    A cameltoe.
  13. 13
    Speed, energy, vigor.
  14. 14
    a person

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. An old traditional prescription for provoking erotic inclinations ran as follows, The toe of the foot of a man, anointed with oil, or honey, or the ashes of a weasel.
  2. (golf) the extreme end of the head of a club.

Etymology

From Middle English to, from Old English tā, (Mercian) tāhe, from Proto-West Germanic *taihā, from Proto-Germanic *taihwǭ, from *tīhwaną (“to show, announce”), from Proto-Indo-European *deyḱ- (“to show”). See also Dutch teen, German Zehe, Danish tå, Swedish tå; also Old English teōn (“to accuse”), German zeihen (“to accuse, blame”); also Hittite [script needed] (tekkuššāi), Latin dīcere (“to say”), digitus (“finger”), Ancient Greek δείκνυμι (deíknumi, “to point out, show”), Sanskrit दिदेष्टि (dídeṣṭi), दिशति (diśáti).

Antonyms

heeltailheel

This word in other languages

orteil(Français)Zeh(Deutsch)artelho(Português)

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 "toe"?
"toe" is spelled T-O-E. The IPA pronunciation is /təʊ/.
What does "toe" mean?
As a noun, "toe" means: Each of the five digits on the end of the human foot.
What words are commonly confused with "toe"?
"toe" is commonly confused with "TV", "TX", "Tu". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "toe"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "toe" is /təʊ/. 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 "toe"?
From Middle English to, from Old English tā, (Mercian) tāhe, from Proto-West Germanic *taihā, from Proto-Germanic *taihwǭ, from *tīhwaną (“to show, announce”), from Proto-Indo-European *deyḱ- (“to show”). See also Dutch teen, German Zehe, Danish t... 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 "toe", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 3 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

BTW#6,443PhD#6,395inn#6,369ink#6,368

What to do next

You've looked up "toe". Here's where to go from here.

  • "toe" maps to 20 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "TV". View pair
  • Usage frequency rank #6,424 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list