gambrel
/ˈɡæmbɹəl/noun, verb
gambrel is spelled G-A-M-B-R-E-L: 7 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 15 million words in written English, the 118,441st most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, gambrel means “The hind leg of a horse; the hock” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of gambrel is gambrels.
How many letters and syllables are in gambrel?
| Letters | 7: G-A-M-B-R-E-L |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 15 million words; the 118,441st 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 gambrel?
Gambrel appears about once in every 15 million words in written English, the 118,441st 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 gambrel?
- /ˈɡæmbɹəl/
Gambrel has 2 syllables (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)-JutishMale-gambrel.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with gambrel?
No other word on PlainSpell ends in the same sounds as gambrel.
Spelled with the same letters in another order: gambler.
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 gambrel
- gambrels plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- gambreling US, participle, present
- gambrelling UK, participle, present
- gambreled US, participle, past
- gambrelled UK, participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does gambrel mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
The hind leg of a horse; the hock.
- 2
obsoleteA bar, usually metal, with a central loop and a hook at each end, used to hang a carcass for butchering.
- 3
A kind of meathook shaped roughly like a horse's hind leg.
- 4
A gambrel roof.
verb
- 1
To truss or hang up using a gambrel.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Gambrel in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense roof:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | toit à deux pentes |
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 gambrel come from?
Uncertain, perhaps from Old Northern French gamberel, from gambe (“leg”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).