wayfarer
/ˈweɪˌfɛəɹ.ə(ɹ)/
"wayfarer" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“wayfarer” is uncommon English (frequency #61,904 among 1,759 “W” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- #61,904
- frequency rank, English
- 1,759
- “W” headwords
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A traveller, especially one on foot.
Corpus desk
Index EN-wayfarer · wayfarer · English
wayfarer · rank #61,904 · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-RARE #61,904
- LEN-LONG 8 letters
- VOW-4 4 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-MID 1,759
- PHOTO-FINISH wakey
Nearest frequency peer: wakey (-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.
Long-tail ranks near “wayfarer”
Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter
- Vientiane
Vientiane
38,102 corpus weight
- wakey
wakey
38,098 corpus weight
- wayfarer
wayfarer
38,097 corpus weight
- weedy
weedy
38,096 corpus weight
- Weintraub
Weintraub
38,094 corpus weight
- Wenatchee
Wenatchee
38,093 corpus weight
What this shows Long-tail view: where “wayfarer” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | wayfarer |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˈweɪˌfɛəɹ.ə(ɹ)/ |
| Letters | 8 |
| Frequency rank | #61,904 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “wayfarer” in English
Rare enough to double-check
wayfarer is uncommon English at frequency #61,904 among 1,759 “W” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈweɪˌfɛəɹ.ə(ɹ)/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "A traveller, especially one on foot.".
wayfarer has no tracked misspelling variants, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English weyfarere, weifarere; equivalent to way + farer. The correct English form is wayfarer, spelled W-A-Y-F-A-R-E-R.
Definition
- 1A traveller, especially one on foot.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how wayfarer appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
English travellers are sometimes found grumbling because the señor who keeps a wayside posada, or even a more pretentious inn in one of the towns, does not stand, hat in hand, bowing obsequiously to the wayfarer who deigns to use the accommodation provided.
ESTRAGON: That would be too bad, really too bad. (Pause.) Wouldn't it, Didi, be really too bad? (Pause.) When you think of the beauty of the way. (Pause.) And the goodness of the wayfarers. (Pause. Wheedling.) Wouldn't it, Didi?
Etymology
From Middle English weyfarere, weifarere; equivalent to way + farer.
This word in other languages
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
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Similar English words by spelling shape
Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "wayfarer", not the corpus desk frequency band.
Same letter count
Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).