blowhole
/ˈbləʊhəʊl/noun, verb
blowhole is spelled B-L-O-W-H-O-L-E: 8 letters and 2 syllables. 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, blowhole means “The spiracle, on the top of the head, through which cetaceans breathe” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of blowhole is blowholes.
How many letters and syllables are in blowhole?
| Letters | 8: B-L-O-W-H-O-L-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (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 |
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).
How common is blowhole?
Blowhole 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 blowhole?
- /ˈbləʊhəʊl/
Blowhole has 2 syllables (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-blowhole.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of blowhole
- blowholes plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- blowholing participle, present
- blowholed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does blowhole mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
The spiracle, on the top of the head, through which cetaceans breathe.
- 2
A hole in sea ice where cetaceans and pinnipeds come to breathe.
- 3
A top-facing opening to a cavity in the ground very near an ocean's shore, leading to a marine cave from which wave water or bursts of air are expelled.
- 4
A vent for the escape of steam or other gas.
- 5
An unintended cavity filled with air in a casting product.
- 6
A vertical opening in the top of a computer case that lets hot air (primarily from the CPU heat sink) escape quickly.
verb
- 1
To fill or be filled with air in an unintended cavity.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Blowhole in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | évent |
| German | Blasloch , Lunker |
| Portuguese | espiráculo, respiradouro |
| Spanish | espiráculo |
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 blowhole come from?
From blow + hole.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).