keg
/kɛɡ/noun, verb
keg is spelled K-E-G: 3 letters and one syllable. It appears 1.2 times per million words in written English, the 26,420th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, keg means “A round, traditionally wooden container of lesser capacity than a barrel, often used to store beer” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of keg is kegs.
How many letters and syllables are in keg?
| Letters | 3: K-E-G |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.2 times per million words; the 26,420th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
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); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is keg?
Keg appears 1.2 times per million words in written English, the 26,420th 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 keg?
- US /kɛɡ/
- /kæɡ/
- /keɪɡ/
Keg has one syllable (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-keg.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with keg?
2 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as keg from its last stressed vowel (/ɛɡ/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of keg
- kegs plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- cag
- kegging participle, present
- kegged participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does keg mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A round, traditionally wooden container of lesser capacity than a barrel, often used to store beer.
verb
- 1
To store in a keg.
- 2
UKThe pulling down of someone's trousers or kegs, oftentimes as a kind of bullying or prank.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Keg in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense round container of lesser capacity than a barrel:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | tonnelet, baril |
| German | Fass |
| Portuguese | barrica, barrilete |
| Spanish | barril, cuñete, barrilete |
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 keg come from?
From Middle English kag, from Old Norse kaggi (“keg”), likely a diminutive of Proto-Germanic *kagô (“bush, branch, stalk, stump”). Cognate with Icelandic kaggi (“keg; cask”), Norwegian kagg (“keg”), Swedish kagge (“keg”), Low German kag (“vessel; craft”), Dutch kaag (“vessel; craft”). Compare also English cag and chag. The modern form keg with /ɛ/ is due to a dialectal raising of /a///æ/ to /ɛ/ before velars (cf. fleg); the expected form is preserved in dialectal /kæɡ/, while /keɪɡ/ reflects further raising that occurred in some dialects.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).