chamois
/ʃæmˈwɑ/noun, adjective, verb
chamois is spelled C-H-A-M-O-I-S: 7 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 3 million words in written English, the 54,808th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, chamois means “A short-horned goat antelope native to mountainous terrain in southern Europe; Rupicapra rupicapra” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of chamois is chamoises or chamoix.
How many letters and syllables are in chamois?
| Letters | 7: C-H-A-M-O-I-S |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 3 million words; the 54,808th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
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); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is chamois?
Chamois appears about once in every 3 million words in written English, the 54,808th 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 chamois?
- UK /ˈʃæmwɑː/
- /ˈʃæmwɑːz/
- US /ʃæmˈwɑ/
Chamois has 2 syllables (counted from the pronunciation).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-chamois.wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-chamois2.wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-chamois3.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with chamois?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as chamois from its last stressed vowel (/ɑ/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of chamois
- chamoises plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- chamoix plural
- shamois
- shamoy
- chamoising participle, present
- chamoised participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does chamois mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A short-horned goat antelope native to mountainous terrain in southern Europe; Rupicapra rupicapra.
- 2
Ellipsis of chamois leather (“soft pliable leather originally made from the skin of chamois (nowadays the hides of deer, sheep, and other species of goat are alternatively used)”).
- 3
The traditional colour of chamois leather.
- 4
An absorbent cloth used for cleaning and polishing, formerly made of chamois leather.
- 5
A padded insert which protects the groin from the bicycle saddle.
adjective
- 1
Chamois-colored.
verb
- 1
To clean with a chamois leather cloth.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Chamois in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | chamois, isard |
| German | Gämse, Gams , Sämischleder |
| Portuguese | camurça |
| Spanish | gamuza, rebeco, sarrio |
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 chamois come from?
Borrowed from Middle French chamois, from Late Latin camox, from Gaulish camox (5th c. AD, Polemius Silvius), probably from an extinct Alpine language (Raetic, Ancient Ligurian), possibly Proto-Indo-European *kem- (“without horns”). Compare also Old High German gamiza (“chamois”) (whence modern German Gämse).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).