gird
/ɡɝd/verb, noun
gird is spelled G-I-R-D: 4 letters and one syllable. It appears about once in every 6 million words in written English, the 73,203rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, gird means “To bind with a flexible rope or cord” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in gird?
| Letters | 4: G-I-R-D |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 6 million words; the 73,203rd 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 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 gird?
Gird appears about once in every 6 million words in written English, the 73,203rd 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 gird?
- UK /ɡɜːd/
- US /ɡɝd/
Gird 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-gird.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with gird?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as gird from its last stressed vowel (/ɜɹd/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: grid.
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 gird
- girds present, singular, he/she/it, plural
- girding participle, present
- girded participle, past
- girt participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does gird mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To bind with a flexible rope or cord.
The fasces were girt about with twine in bundles large.
- 2
To encircle with, or as if with a belt.
a castle girded with a moat
- 3
To prepare (oneself) for an action.
- 4
(of a vessel towing another) To be pulled on sideways by its towline, putting it at risk of capsizing.
On 19 July 2009, the tug North Arm Venture was towing the barge North Arm Express, loaded with fuel and deck cargo, from Toba Inlet to Sechelt Inlet. The tug girded and capsized at approximately 1250 Pacific Daylight Time while making a tur
- 5
To jeer at.
- 6
To jeer.
noun
- 1
A sarcastic remark.
- 2
A stroke with a rod or switch.
- 3
A severe spasm; a twinge; a pang.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Gird in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | lier ceindre garrotter ligaturer |
| German | angurten, anbinden , umringen , rüsten |
| Spanish | atar, ligar , ceñir, rodear, cercar, encerrar |
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 gird come from?
From Middle English girden, gerden, gürden, from Old English gyrdan (“to put a belt around, to put a girdle around”), from Proto-Germanic *gurdijaną (“to gird”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰerdʰ-. Cognate with West Frisian gurdzje, girdzje, Dutch gorden, German gürten, Swedish gjorda, Icelandic gyrða, Albanian ngërthej (“to tie together by weaving, to bind”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).