widower

/ˈwɪdoʊɚ/

//ˈwɪdoʊɚ// noun

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

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

The verdict

“widower” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #28,087. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#28,087
frequency rank, English
1,759
“W” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
3
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A man whose spouse has died (and who has not remarried); a man in relation to his late spouse; masculine of widow.

Corpus desk

Index EN-widower · widower · English

widower · rank #28,087 · 10 variants · 3 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #28,087
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 3 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,759
  • PHOTO-FINISH Welles

Nearest frequency peer: Welles (-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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “widower”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “widower” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

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).

widower vs wider
71% similar
widower vs widow
71% similar
widower vs widowed
86% similar

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

Key facts for widower
PropertyValue
Headwordwidower
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈwɪdoʊɚ/
Letters7
Frequency rank#28,087
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs3
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “widower”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).widowerlands here:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “Welles” (#28,086), “WNBA” (#28,088), “wobbly” (#28,089). Among 1,759 “W” headwords, “widower” is #28,087. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around widower (IPA /ˈwɪdoʊɚ/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #28,087 among 1,759 “W” headwords. Dominant gloss: "A man whose spouse has died (and who has not remarried); a man in relation to his late spouse; masculine of widow.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for widower, with forms such as "iwdower", "wdiower", and "widdower". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 3 confusable-pair relationships, "wider", "widow", "widowed", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English widwer, equivalent to widow + -er. The correct English form is widower, spelled W-I-D-O-W-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    A man whose spouse has died (and who has not remarried); a man in relation to his late spouse; masculine of widow.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Tears of the widower, when he sees ⁠A late-lost form that sleep reveals, ⁠And moves his doubtful arms, and feels Her place is empty, fall like these; […]
  2. What happens to the lovers of people with AIDS? How do they experience the passage from lover to caregiver to "widower"?

Etymology

From Middle English widwer, equivalent to widow + -er.

This word in other languages

viudo(Español)veuf(Français)Witwer(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • iwdower
  • wdiower
  • widdower
  • widoewr
  • widowerr
  • widowre
  • widowwer
  • widwoer
  • wiodwer
  • wwidower

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of widower - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

iwdower2wdiower2widdower1widoewr2widowerr1widowre2widowwer1widwoer2
Edit distance from "widower"

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 "widower"?
"widower" is spelled W-I-D-O-W-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈwɪdoʊɚ/.
What does "widower" mean?
As a noun, "widower" means: A man whose spouse has died (and who has not remarried); a man in relation to his late spouse; masculine of widow.
What words are commonly confused with "widower"?
"widower" is commonly confused with "wider", "widow", "widowed". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "widower"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "widower" is /ˈwɪdoʊɚ/. 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 "widower"?
From Middle English widwer, equivalent to widow + -er. 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 "widower", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

watcher#28,084warhead#28,083varnish#28,076alameda#28,107

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (10 here; floor ≥5).

accorded10 variantsAlgiers10 variantstrusty10 variantsalluring10 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list