wintry

/ˈwɪnt(ə)ɹɪ/

//ˈwɪnt(ə)ɹɪ// adj

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

"wintry" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“wintry” has 10 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #40,521. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#40,521
frequency rank, English
1,759
“W” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
7
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Suggestive or characteristic of winter; cold, stormy.

Corpus desk

Index EN-wintry · wintry · English

wintry · rank #40,521 · 10 variants · 7 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #40,521
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 7 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,759
  • PHOTO-FINISH winehouse

Nearest frequency peer: winehouse (-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 “wintry”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “wintry” 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).

wintry vs witty
67% similar
wintry vs windy
67% similar
wintry vs winter
67% similar

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

Key facts for wintry
PropertyValue
Headwordwintry
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈwɪnt(ə)ɹɪ/
Letters6
Frequency rank#40,521
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs7
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “wintry”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).wintrylands 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 “winehouse” (#40,520), “Windham” (#40,519), “Wycombe” (#40,523). Among 1,759 “W” headwords, “wintry” is #40,521. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around wintry (IPA /ˈwɪnt(ə)ɹɪ/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #40,521 among 1,759 “W” headwords. Wiktionary lists 4 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for wintry, with forms such as "iwntry", "winntry", and "winrty". 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 7 confusable-pair relationships, "witty", "windy", "winter", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From winter + -y; compare Old English wintriġ (a parallel formation). The correct English form is wintry, spelled W-I-N-T-R-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    Suggestive or characteristic of winter; cold, stormy.
  2. 2
    Containing sleet or snow.
  3. 3
    Aged, white-haired.
  4. 4
    Chilling, cheerless.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. wintry weather
  2. A faded, and an ancient dragon he was; and many a wintry storm of rain, snow, sleet, and hail, had changed his colour from a gaudy blue to a faint lack-lustre shade of gray.

Etymology

From winter + -y; compare Old English wintriġ (a parallel formation).

This word in other languages

invernal(Español)hivernal(Français)winterlich(Deutsch)invernoso(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • iwntry
  • winntry
  • winrty
  • wintrry
  • wintryy
  • winttry
  • wintyr
  • witnry
  • wnitry
  • wwintry

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of wintry - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

iwntry2winntry1winrty2wintrry1wintryy1winttry1wintyr2witnry2
Edit distance from "wintry"

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 "wintry"?
"wintry" is spelled W-I-N-T-R-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈwɪnt(ə)ɹɪ/.
What does "wintry" mean?
As an adjective, "wintry" means: Suggestive or characteristic of winter; cold, stormy.
What words are commonly confused with "wintry"?
"wintry" is commonly confused with "witty", "windy", "winter". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "wintry"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "wintry" is /ˈwɪnt(ə)ɹɪ/. 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 "wintry"?
From winter + -y; compare Old English wintriġ (a parallel formation). 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 "wintry", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

weevil#40,515vestry#40,506Acadia#40,537acetyl#40,538

Similar misspelling depth

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

acrobat10 variantsAlgarve10 variantstwisty10 variantstoolbar10 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list