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PlainSpell

flex

/flɛks/noun, verb

flex is spelled F-L-E-X: 4 letters and one syllable. It appears 5.4 times per million words in written English, the 10,680th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, flex means “Flexibility, pliancy” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of flex is flexes.

How many letters and syllables are in flex?

Letters4: F-L-E-X
Syllables1 (from its American pronunciation)
In writing5.4 times per million words; the 10,680th most frequent word form
Wrong spellings searchednone 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 flex?

Flex appears 5.4 times per million words in written English, the 10,680th 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 flex?

  • /flɛks/

Flex has one syllable (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: En-us-flex.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).

Forms of flex

  • flexes plural, present, singular, he/she/it
  • flexing participle, present
  • flexed participle, past

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What does flex mean?

The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).

noun

  1. 1

    Flexibility, pliancy.

  2. 2

    An act of flexing.

  3. 3

    IrelandUKAny flexible insulated electrical wiring.

  4. 4

    A flexible insulated electrical cord.

  5. 5

    Flexible ductwork, typically flexible plastic over a metal wire coil to shape a tube.

  6. 6

    A point of inflection.

  7. 7

    slangAn act or instance of flaunting something; a boast or brag; something considered impressive.

    Getting together with other power players at Masa is the ultimate flex of conspicuous consumption. […] A party of five or more requires a deposit of $200 per person at least one week prior to the reservation.

verb

  1. 1

    To bend something.

    The board flexes as you step on it.

  2. 2

    To repeatedly bend one of one's joints.

  3. 3

    To move part of the body using one's muscles.

  4. 4

    To tighten the muscles for display of size or strength.

  5. 5

    slangTo boast or brag about; to flaunt (something).

  6. 6

    slangTo flaunt one's superiority; to show off.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

Flex in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese

LanguageWords
GermanBiegsamkeit, Flexibilität, Elastizität (flexibility), Anschlusskabel (insulated electrical wiring), knicken, biegen (1. to bend something)
Portugueseflexibilidade (flexibility), flexionar (1. to bend something), flexão (the act of flexing), tensionar (4. to tighten one's muscles)
Frenchbander (4. to tighten one's muscles), fléchir (3. to move part of the body using one's muscles)
Spanishfisiquear (4. to tighten one's muscles)

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 flex come from?

From Latin flexus, past participle of flecto (“to bend”).

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What to look up after flex