henpecked
hen·pecked/ˈhɛnpɛkt/adjective
henpecked is spelled H-E-N-P-E-C-K-E-D: 9 letters and 2 syllables (hen·pecked). It appears about once in every 16 million words in written English, the 121,279th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, henpecked means “Intimidated or overwhelmed by a nagging or overbearing matriarch, wife, or girlfriend” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in henpecked?
| Letters | 9: H-E-N-P-E-C-K-E-D |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: hen·pecked |
| In writing | about once in every 16 million words; the 121,279th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is henpecked?
Henpecked appears about once in every 16 million words in written English, the 121,279th 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 henpecked?
- /ˈhɛnpɛkt/
Henpecked has 2 syllables, split hen·pecked in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-henpecked.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of henpecked
- more henpecked comparative
- most henpecked superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does henpecked mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Intimidated or overwhelmed by a nagging or overbearing matriarch, wife, or girlfriend.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Henpecked in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense plagued or overwhelmed by one's wife:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | jobard, la femme porte la culotte, dominé par sa femme |
| German | unter dem Pantoffel, Pantoffelheld |
| Portuguese | mandado |
| Spanish | calzonazos, planchabragas, mandilón, macabeo, pollerudo, pisado |
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 henpecked come from?
From hen + pecked.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).