intercostal
/ˌɪn.tɚˈkɔ.stəl/adjective, noun
intercostal is spelled I-N-T-E-R-C-O-S-T-A-L: 11 letters and 4 syllables. It appears about once in every 7 million words in written English, the 76,798th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, intercostal means “Between the ribs of an animal or person” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in intercostal?
| Letters | 11: I-N-T-E-R-C-O-S-T-A-L |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4 (from its pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 7 million words; the 76,798th 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 intercostal?
Intercostal appears about once in every 7 million words in written English, the 76,798th 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 intercostal?
- UK /ˌɪn.təˈkɒs.təl/
- US /ˌɪn.tɚˈkɔ.stəl/
Intercostal has 4 syllables (counted from the pronunciation).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Forms of intercostal
- intercostals plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does intercostal mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Between the ribs of an animal or person.
- 2
Between the ribs of a boat.
noun
- 1
Any of the intercostal muscles.
- 2
Something that is between the ribs of an animal.
- 3
Hull reinforcing inserted between frames or bulkheads of a boat.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Intercostal in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense anatomy: between the ribs of an animal or person:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| German | interkostal |
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 intercostal come from?
From inter- + costal.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).