weft

/wɛft/

//wɛft// noun

"weft" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“weft” is uncommon English (frequency #56,529 among 12,113 “W” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#56,529
frequency rank, English
12,113
“W” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The horizontal threads that are interlaced through the warp in a woven fabric.

Key facts for weft
PropertyValue
Headwordweft
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/wɛft/
Letters4
Frequency rank#56,529
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “weft” 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). weft 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

weft is uncommon English at frequency #56,529 among 12,113 “W” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /wɛft/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for weft, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English wefte, from Old English wefan (“to weave”), from Proto-West Germanic *weban, from Proto-Germanic *webaną. Equivalent to weave + -t (abstract nominal suffix). The correct English form is weft, spelled W-E-F-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    The horizontal threads that are interlaced through the warp in a woven fabric.
  2. 2
    The yarn used for the weft; the fill.
  3. 3
    A hair extension that is glued directly to a person′s natural hair.

Etymology

From Middle English wefte, from Old English wefan (“to weave”), from Proto-West Germanic *weban, from Proto-Germanic *webaną. Equivalent to weave + -t (abstract nominal suffix).

Synonyms

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

How do you spell "weft"?
"weft" is spelled W-E-F-T. The IPA pronunciation is /wɛft/.
What does "weft" mean?
As a noun, "weft" means: The horizontal threads that are interlaced through the warp in a woven fabric.
How do you pronounce "weft"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "weft" is /wɛft/. 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 "weft"?
From Middle English wefte, from Old English wefan (“to weave”), from Proto-West Germanic *weban, from Proto-Germanic *webaną. Equivalent to weave + -t (abstract nominal suffix). 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 “weft”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is W-E-F-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /wɛft/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • 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