wagtail

noun

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

"wagtail" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“wagtail” is uncommon English (frequency #93,313 among 12,113 “W” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#93,313
frequency rank, English
12,113
“W” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Any of various small passerine birds, principally of genus Motacilla, of the Old World, notable for their long tails.

Key facts for wagtail
PropertyValue
Headwordwagtail
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters7
Frequency rank#93,313
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “wagtail” 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). wagtail lands here:

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

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

Rare enough to double-check

wagtail is uncommon English at frequency #93,313 among 12,113 “W” headwords, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

wagtail doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

Etymologically, the entry records: From a partial suppletion of Middle English wagstert (literally “wag-tail”), equivalent to wag + tail. The correct English form is wagtail, spelled W-A-G-T-A-I-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    Any of various small passerine birds, principally of genus Motacilla, of the Old World, notable for their long tails.
  2. 2
    Ellipsis of wagtail platy.

Etymology

From a partial suppletion of Middle English wagstert (literally “wag-tail”), equivalent to wag + tail.

This word in other languages

lavandera(Español)hochequeue(Français)Stelze(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 "wagtail"?
"wagtail" is spelled W-A-G-T-A-I-L.
What does "wagtail" mean?
As a noun, "wagtail" means: Any of various small passerine birds, principally of genus Motacilla, of the Old World, notable for their long tails.
What is the origin of the word "wagtail"?
From a partial suppletion of Middle English wagstert (literally “wag-tail”), equivalent to wag + tail. 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 “wagtail”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is W-A-G-T-A-I-L - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words

Other uncommon English words near this rank

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