jugular
/ˈd͡ʒʌɡ.jəl.ɚ/adjective, noun
jugular is spelled J-U-G-U-L-A-R: 7 letters and 3 syllables. It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 37,943rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, jugular means “Relating to, or located near, the neck or throat” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in jugular?
| Letters | 7: J-U-G-U-L-A-R |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 37,943rd 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 jugular?
Jugular appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 37,943rd 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 jugular?
- UK /ˈd͡ʒʌɡ.jʊl.ə/
- US /ˈd͡ʒʌɡ.jəl.ɚ/
- US /ˈd͡ʒu.ɡjəl.ɚ/
Jugular has 3 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-jugular.ogg, En-au-jugular.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of jugular
- jugulars plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does jugular mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Relating to, or located near, the neck or throat.
- 2
Of or pertaining to the jugular vein.
- 3
Having ventral fins attached under the throat.
- 4
Relating to juggling.
noun
- 1
rareEllipsis of jugular vein.
- 2
rareAny critical vulnerability.
It was vicious; he went for the jugular.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Jugular in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense relating to the neck or throat:
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 jugular come from?
Late 16th century borrowing from Late Latin jugulāris, from jugulum (“the collarbone; the hollow part of the neck above the collarbone; the throat”) + -āris (“-ar, -ary”, adjectival suffix); equivalent to jugulum + -ar.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).