gab
/ɡæb/noun, verb
gab is spelled G-A-B: 3 letters and one syllable. It appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 35,748th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data, counting Gab, the name). As a noun, gab means “Idle chatter” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of gab is gabs.
How many letters and syllables are in gab?
| Letters | 3: G-A-B |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 1 million words; the 35,748th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Same letters |
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 gab?
Gab appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 35,748th most frequent word form in the list. The list counts every capitalisation together, so this includes Gab, the name.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce gab?
- /ɡæb/
Gab 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: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-gab.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with gab?
No other word on PlainSpell ends in the same sounds as gab.
Spelled with the same letters in another order: bag.
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 gab
- gabs plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- gabbing participle, present
- gabbed participle, past
- gab-
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does gab mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
Idle chatter.
- 2
The mouth or gob.
- 3
One of the open-forked ends of rods controlling reversing in early steam engines.
verb
- 1
obsoleteTo jest; to tell lies in jest; exaggerate; lie.
- 2
To talk or chatter a lot, usually on trivial subjects.
- 3
obsoleteTo speak or tell falsely.
noun
- 1
Initialism of gender-atypical behavior.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Gab in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | bagou , papoter, bavarder, babiller |
| German | Geschwätz, Gequassel , schwatzen, quasseln |
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 gab come from?
Inherited from Middle English gab, gabbe, from Old Norse gabb (“jest, mockery”) (whence also Old French gab, gap (“mockery, derision, scorn”)). Cognate with Icelandic gabb (“hoax”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).