withe
/wɪθ/noun, verb
withe is spelled W-I-T-H-E: 5 letters and one syllable. It appears about once in every 8 million words in written English, the 83,271st most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, withe means “A flexible, slender shoot or twig, especially when used as a band or for binding; a withy” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of withe is withes.
How many letters and syllables are in withe?
| Letters | 5: W-I-T-H-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 8 million words; the 83,271st most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with | |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is withe?
Withe appears about once in every 8 million words in written English, the 83,271st most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce withe?
- UK /wɪθ/
- UK /wɪð/
- UK /waɪð/
Withe has one syllable (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-withe.wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-withe2.wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-withe3.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with withe
Also written: with.
Sources: English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
What rhymes with withe?
One word on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as withe from its last stressed vowel (/ɪθ/, British pronunciation):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: white.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of withe
- withes plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- with
- withing participle, present
- withed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does withe mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A flexible, slender shoot or twig, especially when used as a band or for binding; a withy.
- 2
A band of twisted twigs.
- 3
An elastic handle to a tool to save the hand from the shock of blows.
- 4
An iron attachment on one end of a mast or boom, with a ring, through which another mast or boom is rigged out and secured.
- 5
Alternative spelling of wythe (“single section of bricks one unit thick”).
- 6
Alternative spelling of wythe (“partition between flues in a chimney”).
verb
- 1
To bind with withes.
- 2
To beat with withes.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Withe in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense twig or shoot:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | brin d'osier |
| German | Bindeweide, Bindegerte |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does withe come from?
From Middle English withe, from Old English wiþþe (“band, tie”), from Proto-Germanic *wiþiz, *wiþjǭ (“cord, rope”), from Proto-Indo-European *wéh₁itis (“that which twines”), from *weyt- (“that which winds or bends, branch, switch”), from Proto-Indo-European *wey- (“to turn, wind, bend”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).