camel
ca·mel/ˈkæm(ə)l/noun, adjective
camel is spelled C-A-M-E-L: 5 letters and 2 syllables (ca·mel). It appears 4.4 times per million words in written English, the 12,216th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, camel means “A mammalian beast of burden, much used in desert areas, of the genus Camelus” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of camel is camels.
How many letters and syllables are in camel?
| Letters | 5: C-A-M-E-L |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: ca·mel |
| In writing | 4.4 times per million words; the 12,216th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is camel?
Camel appears 4.4 times per million words in written English, the 12,216th 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 camel?
- UK /ˈkæml̩/
- US /ˈkæm(ə)l/
Camel has 2 syllables, split ca·mel in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-camel.ogg, En-au-camel.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of camel
- camels plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does camel mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A mammalian beast of burden, much used in desert areas, of the genus Camelus.
- 2
A light brownish color, like that of a camel (also called camel brown).
- 3
A vessel or tank, typically paired, used to make an object more buoyant.
Near-synonym: pontoon
- 4
A person of Middle Eastern origin.
- 5
A fairy chess piece that is moved three squares in one direction and one at right angles to that direction in a single move, leaping over any intervening pieces.
- 6
obsoleteSynonym of giraffe.
adjective
- 1
Of a light brown color like that of a camel.
noun
- 1
A cigarette of a popular American brand.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Camel in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense beast of burden:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | chameau, chamelle |
| German | Kamel |
| Portuguese | camelo, camela |
| Spanish | camello, dromedario, camella |
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 camel come from?
From Middle English camel, through Old English camel and Old Northern French camel (Old French chamel, modern French chameau), from Latin camēlus, from Ancient Greek κάμηλος (kámēlos), from a Semitic source, ultimately from Proto-Semitic *gamal-; compare Arabic جَمَل (jamal), Hebrew גמל (gamál), Aramaic ܓܡܠܐ (gamlā), Coptic ϭⲁⲙⲟⲩⲗ (čamoul). As a marine device, from Dutch. As an ethnic slur, short for camelfucker, camel jockey, etc.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).