ibex
/ˈaɪbɛks/noun
ibex is spelled I-B-E-X: 4 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 4 million words in written English, the 58,714th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, ibex means “A type of wild mountain goat of the genus Capra, such as the species Capra ibex” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of ibex is ibexes or ibices.
How many letters and syllables are in ibex?
| Letters | 4: I-B-E-X |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 4 million words; the 58,714th 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 ibex?
Ibex appears about once in every 4 million words in written English, the 58,714th 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 ibex?
- /ˈaɪbɛks/
Ibex 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)-Vealhurl-ibex.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of ibex
- ibexes plural
- ibices plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does ibex mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A type of wild mountain goat of the genus Capra, such as the species Capra ibex.
- 2
An imaginary creature with serrated horns, somewhat similar to the heraldic antelope.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Ibex in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense type of wild mountain goat:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | bouquetin |
| German | Steinbock |
| Portuguese | cabra-montês, cabra alpina, cabra brava, íbex |
| Spanish | íbice, ibex |
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 ibex come from?
From Latin ībex (“chamois”), possibly from Iberian or Aquitanian; akin to Old Spanish bezerro (“bull”) (modern becerro (“yearling”)).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).