widdershins
/ˈwɪ.də.ʃɪnz/
"widdershins" is a 11-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“widdershins” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as an adverb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 11
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Anticlockwise, counter-clockwise.
Corpus desk
Index EN-widdershins · widdershins · English
widdershins · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-MEGA 11 letters
- VOW-3 3 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "W" thin
- PHOTO-UNK Peer pending
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.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | widdershins |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adverb |
| IPA | /ˈwɪ.də.ʃɪnz/ |
| Letters | 11 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “widdershins” in English
Rare enough to double-check
widdershins is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anadverb, transcribed /ˈwɪ.də.ʃɪnz/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.
No misspelling variants are generated for widdershins in our index, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable English rules. 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: First use appears c. 1513, from Middle Low German weddersins (also wēder-, -sinnes), from wed(d)der- (“wither-, against, opposite”) + genitive of sin (“direction, way”). The correct English form is widdershins, spelled W-I-D-D-E-R-S-H-I-N-S.
Definition
- 1Anticlockwise, counter-clockwise.
- 2The wrong way.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how widdershins appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
It is unlucky to walk widdershins around a church.
If Burd Ellen had gone “widishins" round the church, she would, I think, have used the best homoeopathic specific against the Elf-King's power; for "to go widishins" was the chief element in elfin practices, and if mortals wished to resist or unspell elf-craft, they, too, had "to go widershins," or they had to repeat the Paternoster backwards, which came…
Etymology
First use appears c. 1513, from Middle Low German weddersins (also wēder-, -sinnes), from wed(d)der- (“wither-, against, opposite”) + genitive of sin (“direction, way”).
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.