defang
/diːˈfæŋ/verb
defang is spelled D-E-F-A-N-G: 6 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 41 million words in written English, the 196,618th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, defang means “To remove the fangs from (something)” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in defang?
| Letters | 6: D-E-F-A-N-G |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 41 million words; the 196,618th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with | |
| Same letters |
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 defang?
Defang appears about once in every 41 million words in written English, the 196,618th 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 defang?
- UK /diːˈfæŋ/
Defang has 2 syllables (counted from the pronunciation).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What rhymes with defang?
One word on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as defang from its last stressed vowel (/æŋ/, British pronunciation):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: fanged.
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 defang
- defangs present, singular, he/she/it
- defanging participle, present
- defanged participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does defang mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To remove the fangs from (something).
The snake was defanged.
- 2
To render (something) harmless.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Defang in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense render harmless:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | dégriffer |
| German | entkrallen |
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 defang come from?
From de- + fang.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).