hypocaust
noun
hypocaust is spelled H-Y-P-O-C-A-U-S-T: 9 letters. It appears about once in every 49 million words in written English, the 217,360th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, hypocaust means “An underfloor space or flue through which heat from a furnace passes to heat the floor of a room or a bath” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of hypocaust is hypocausts.
How many letters and syllables are in hypocaust?
| Letters | 9: H-Y-P-O-C-A-U-S-T |
|---|---|
| In writing | about once in every 49 million words; the 217,360th 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 hypocaust?
Hypocaust appears about once in every 49 million words in written English, the 217,360th 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).
Forms of hypocaust
- hypocausts plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does hypocaust mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
An underfloor space or flue through which heat from a furnace passes to heat the floor of a room or a bath.
- 2
An underfloor heating system, even without such an underfloor space or flue, as adapted for modern housing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Hypocaust in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense underground heating system for a bath:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | hypocauste |
| German | Hypokaustum, Hypokauste, Heizgewölbe |
| Spanish | hipocausto |
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 hypocaust come from?
From Latin hypocaustum, from Ancient Greek ὑπόκαυστον (hupókauston), from Ancient Greek ὑπό (hupó, “underneath”) + καυστόν (kaustón, “burnt offering”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).