kibosh
ki·bosh/ˈkaɪˌbɑʃ/noun, verb
kibosh is spelled K-I-B-O-S-H: 6 letters and 2 syllables (ki·bosh). It appears about once in every 9 million words in written English, the 90,432nd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, kibosh means “Only used in put on the kibosh and put the kibosh on: something which checks or restrains” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in kibosh?
| Letters | 6: K-I-B-O-S-H |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: ki·bosh |
| In writing | about once in every 9 million words; the 90,432nd 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 kibosh?
Kibosh appears about once in every 9 million words in written English, the 90,432nd 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 kibosh?
- UK /ˈkaɪˌbɒʃ/
- UK /kɪˈbɑʃ/
- US /ˈkaɪˌbɑʃ/
Kibosh has 2 syllables, split ki·bosh in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-au-kibosh.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of kibosh
- cabosh
- kaibosh
- kibbosh
- kiebosh
- kybosh
- kyebosh
- kiboshes present, singular, he/she/it
- kiboshing participle, present
- kiboshed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does kibosh mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
slangOnly used in put on the kibosh and put the kibosh on: something which checks or restrains.
- 2
UKobsoleterareslangBosh, nonsense.
- 3
UKobsoleterareslangChiefly preceded by the: fashion, style.
verb
- 1
slangTo decisively put a stop to or terminate (someone or something).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Kibosh in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense something which checks or restrains:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | holà |
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.