fox
/fɑks/noun, verb
fox is spelled F-O-X: 3 letters and one syllable. It appears 46 times per million words in written English, the 2,204th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, fox means “Any member of the genus Vulpes; a true fox” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of fox is foxes; Wiktionary also lists foxen (dialectal).
How many letters and syllables are in fox?
| Letters | 3: F-O-X |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 46 times per million words; the 2,204th 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 and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; 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 fox?
Fox appears 46 times per million words in written English, the 2,204th 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 fox?
- UK /fɒks/
- British /fɔks/
- US /fɑks/
Fox 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-fox.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with fox?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as fox from its last stressed vowel (/ɑks/):
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 fox
- foxes plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- foxing participle, present
- foxed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does fox mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
Any member of the genus Vulpes; a true fox.
- 2
The red fox, a small carnivore (Vulpes vulpes) with red or silver fur.
The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.
- 3
Other canines that resemble true foxes, of the genera Cerdocyon, Lycalopex, Otocyon, and Urocyon.
- 4
The fur of a fox.
- 5
A fox terrier.
- 6
AustraliaA flying fox.
- 7
The gemmeous dragonet, a fish, Callionymus lyra, so called from its yellow color.
- 8
A cunning person.
verb
- 1
To trick, fool or outwit (someone) by cunning or ingenuity.
- 2
To sham, to dissemble.
- 3
To confuse or baffle (someone).
This crossword puzzle has completely foxed me.
- 4
To act slyly or craftily.
- 5
datedTo cheat or rob.
Have you any news of Miriam? As I have had no reply to my delicately worded epistle, I can only presume that you foxed me with the wrong address, and that you are yourself already engaged to be married to her.
- 6
To discolour paper. Fox marks are spots on paper caused by humidity. (See foxing.)
The pages of the book show distinct foxing.
- 7
To make sour, as beer, by causing it to ferment.
- 8
To turn sour; said of beer, etc., when it sours in fermenting.
noun
- 1
A radiotelephony clear-code word for the letter F.
- 2
Someone connected with Leicester City Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.
- 3
datedEllipsis of Fox Indian (“a member of the Outagamie or Meskwaki, a Native American people”).
noun
- 1
Acronym of forkhead box protein.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Fox in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | renard, goupil, renard roux, renard commun , roublard , se jouer de |
| German | Fuchs, Fuchsrüde, Füchsin, Fähe, Fuchsmännchen, Fuchsweibchen |
| Portuguese | raposa, raposa-vermelha, golpenha , matreiro, raposa velha |
| Spanish | zorro, zorra, raposo, raposa, vulpeja, raboso |
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 fox come from?
From Middle English fox, from Old English fox (“fox”), from Proto-West Germanic *fuhs, from Proto-Germanic *fuhsaz (“fox”), from Proto-Indo-European *púḱsos (“the tailed one”), possibly from *puḱ- (“tail”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).