Help and questions

Short answers about the lookup, its labels and its limits. For the longer version, see About and how it works.

What does Word Says Hi do, and what can't it do?

Submit a word and the tool returns a generated account of its possible earlier forms, meaning changes and related words, with uncertain steps marked. It cannot verify its own claims: a reading is a research starting point, not a finished etymology, and it supplies no verified citations. The About page describes the tool's scope.

Why does a reading say “reported” or “uncertain”?

Readings are produced by a model, so every claim stays labelled. “Reported” marks a commonly reported historical step the model describes cautiously; “Uncertain” marks a link or chronology that is unsettled. The status line — “A path is suggested”, “Some steps are uncertain” or “More context needed” — describes the shape of the reading, not a score. These labels are not independent verification, and there is no accuracy percentage; check each step before relying on it.

Which words work best in the lookup?

A single word of 1 to 80 characters. The optional language hint (up to 100 characters) helps when a spelling exists in more than one language. A phrase, sentence or non-word may come back marked “More context needed”, with notes saying what would help. For a checking method once a reading arrives, see the word origin research guide.

What happens to my word when I submit it?

The word and optional hint go through this site's Cloudflare Worker to Qomza's analysis gateway, together with technical request metadata: the IP address Cloudflare sees for your connection, an approximate browser language preference, a per-request identifier and app details such as name, version and request type. Qomza keeps each lookup, the result it returns and related service information in its records; they are not deleted automatically. The Privacy page gives the full disclosure.

Does Word Says Hi cost anything?

No. The browser lookup is free to use, and there are no accounts to create or sign into.

Why did my lookup fail or stop?

Common causes: the word field was empty or over 80 characters, or the hint over 100 — shorten and resubmit. The lookup took too long — the browser allows about 45 seconds and the site's Worker gives the analysis service about 42 — submit the same word again. The abuse limit was reached — around 10 lookups per 60 seconds per connecting IP at each Cloudflare location — wait about a minute. Or the service or network was unavailable — check your connection and try again.

Can I cite a reading as a source or settled fact?

No. A generated reading proposes a possible history; it does not supply citations, quotations or verified scholarship. Confirm each claim in a historical dictionary or dated text and cite those sources instead — the word origin research guide walks through that method, and every reading ends with the same checking steps. For coursework or publication, follow the citation standard your course or publication requires.

How are the examples and guides different from a lookup result?

Lookup readings are generated for the word you submit. The ten word pages are curated summaries of named dictionary entries — Merriam-Webster, the Online Etymology Dictionary and the American Heritage Dictionary — with source links beside their claims. The ten guides are researched editorial pages that list their sources. Neither is model output.

How do I report a wrong result or a mistake in a guide?

Email hello@wordsayshi.com, or use the Report a problem section below for what to include. Inside a reading, the “Report a problem with this reading” link starts a message with the word and its reading ID filled in. Reports are read, and guide and word pages are corrected when an error is confirmed.

Are there mobile apps?

The iOS and Android apps are in development. App Store and Google Play links will appear on this site after publication; there is no release date yet.

How do I contact you?

Email hello@wordsayshi.com — the contact page lists what to include, the reply expectation, and where privacy and legal requests go. Word Says Hi is operated by Qomza, LLC; its postal address is on the contact page.

Report a problem

If a generated reading looks wrong, or a guide or word page contains an error, email hello@wordsayshi.com. It helps to include the page address or the word you looked up, any reading or request ID the page shows, and what seems wrong or what you expected instead. Please do not include sensitive personal information such as passwords, payment details or authentication codes.

Reports are read, and guide and word pages are corrected when an error is confirmed. Report a problem by email.