yessum

/ˈjɛs(ə)m/

//ˈjɛs(ə)m// contraction

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

The verdict

“yessum” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a contraction. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
6
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Used to express agreement with a woman (and, somewhat less commonly, a man): yes, ma'am.

Corpus desk

Index EN-yessum · yessum · English

yessum · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "Y" 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.

Key facts for yessum
PropertyValue
Headwordyessum
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechContraction
IPA/ˈjɛs(ə)m/
Letters6
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “yessum” in English

yessumsits beyond the 100,000 most-frequent English words, in the long tail of technical, archaic, or otherwise rare vocabulary where spelling doubt tends to strike hardest.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

yessum is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as acontraction, transcribed /ˈjɛs(ə)m/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

yessum has no tracked misspelling variants, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: Contraction of yes, ma'am. The correct English form is yessum, spelled Y-E-S-S-U-M.

Definition

  1. 1
    Used to express agreement with a woman (and, somewhat less commonly, a man): yes, ma'am.
  2. 2
    Alternative form of yes.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. "I would like to sit down in your shade beside you," said the Tall Man. "Yassum," said the Little Bit of a Girl. […] "Why do you have the crutch?" asked the Tall Man presently. "Yassum, the crutch, the doctor he gave it to me, yassum," said the Little Bit of a Girl.
  2. "Yessum." Luster said. "We coming. You done played hell. Get up." He jerked my arm and I got up.

Etymology

Contraction of yes, ma'am.

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.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "yessum"?
"yessum" is spelled Y-E-S-S-U-M. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈjɛs(ə)m/.
What does "yessum" mean?
As a contraction, "yessum" means: Used to express agreement with a woman (and, somewhat less commonly, a man): yes, ma'am.
How do you pronounce "yessum"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "yessum" is /ˈjɛs(ə)m/. 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 "yessum"?
Contraction of yes, ma'am. 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list