fed
/ˈfɛd/noun, verb
fed is spelled F-E-D: 3 letters and one syllable. It appears 32 times per million words in written English, the 2,941st most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a derogatory noun, fed means “A federal government officer or official” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of fed is feds.
How many letters and syllables are in fed?
| Letters | 3: F-E-D |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 |
| In writing | 32 times per million words; the 2,941st 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 fed?
Fed appears 32 times per million words in written English, the 2,941st 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 fed?
- UK /ˈfɛd/
- UK [ˈfɛd] ~ [ˈfe̞d]
- US /ˈfɛd/
Fed has one syllable.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-fed.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with fed?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as fed from its last stressed vowel (/ɛd/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: def.
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 fed
- feds plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- fedding participle, present
- fedded participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does fed mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
derogatoryslangA federal government officer or official.
That corrupt fed was caught taking bribes from a mobster!
- 2
slangA police officer.
- 3
The federal government of the nation one resides in.
Salmon were becoming scarce in the river until the feds stepped in.
- 4
slangA federation in which powerlifters organize to compete.
- 5
Clipping of federation.
verb
- 1
simple past and past participle of feed
- 2
Clipping of federate.
noun
- 1
Initialism of flight-time equivalent dose.
- 2
Initialism of field emission display.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Where does fed come from?
Clipping of federal.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).