heifer
/ˈhɛfə(ɹ)/noun
heifer is spelled H-E-I-F-E-R: 6 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 3 million words in written English, the 47,073rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, heifer means “A young female cow, (particularly) one over one year old but which has not calved” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of heifer is heifers.
How many letters and syllables are in heifer?
| Letters | 6: H-E-I-F-E-R |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 3 million words; the 47,073rd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none 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 heifer?
Heifer appears about once in every 3 million words in written English, the 47,073rd 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 heifer?
- /ˈhɛfə(ɹ)/
- /ˈhɛfɚ/
Heifer 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: En-us-heifer.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of heifer
- heifers plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does heifer mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A young female cow, (particularly) one over one year old but which has not calved.
- 2
obsoleteA wife.
- 3
derogatoryslangAn unattractive or unpleasant woman.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Heifer in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | génisse , thon, morue |
| German | Färse, Kalbin, Kalbe, Queene |
| Portuguese | novilha, bezerra |
| Spanish | becerra, vaquilla , bruja, adefesio |
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 heifer come from?
Inherited from Middle English heyfre, hayfre, heyfer, from Old English hēahfore, hēahfru, of disputed origin; see the Old English entry for more discussion.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).