wythe
/waɪθ/
"wythe" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“wythe” is uncommon English (frequency #69,595 among 1,759 “W” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- #69,595
- frequency rank, English
- 1,759
- “W” headwords
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A continuous vertical section of masonry, one unit in thickness.
Corpus desk
Index EN-wythe · wythe · English
wythe · rank #69,595 · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-RARE #69,595
- LEN-MID 5 letters
- VOW-2 2 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-MID 1,759
- PHOTO-FINISH WSL
Nearest frequency peer: WSL (-2 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.
Long-tail ranks near “wythe”
Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter
- wonderwall
wonderwall
30,411 corpus weight
- worksite
worksite
30,410 corpus weight
- woz
woz
30,409 corpus weight
- WSL
WSL
30,408 corpus weight
- wythe
wythe
30,406 corpus weight
- xor
xor
30,404 corpus weight
What this shows Long-tail view: where “wythe” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | wythe |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /waɪθ/ |
| Letters | 5 |
| Frequency rank | #69,595 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “wythe” in English
Rare enough to double-check
wythe is uncommon English at frequency #69,595 among 1,759 “W” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /waɪθ/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.
We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for wythe, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable English rules. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.
Etymologically, the entry records: Uncertain. * Perhaps an alteration of width. * Perhaps related to withe (“flexible twig; band of twigs”), from Old English wiþþe (“tie, band”). The chimney-partition sense may derive from the fact that a single wythe or thickness of brick has often been use… The correct English form is wythe, spelled W-Y-T-H-E.
Definition
- 1A continuous vertical section of masonry, one unit in thickness.
- 2A partition between flues in a chimney.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how wythe appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
That wall has to be at least three wythes of brick to support your load.
A chimney runs from the base of the first flue liner to the top of the last flue liner, or to any rain cap above it. Attach single-wythe chimneys to the house.
Etymology
Uncertain. * Perhaps an alteration of width. * Perhaps related to withe (“flexible twig; band of twigs”), from Old English wiþþe (“tie, band”). The chimney-partition sense may derive from the fact that a single wythe or thickness of brick has often been used for such partitions.
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
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Similar English words by spelling shape
Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "wythe", not the corpus desk frequency band.
Same letter count
Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).