kinky
/ˈkɪŋki/adjective
kinky is spelled K-I-N-K-Y: 5 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 2.3 times per million words in written English, the 17,813th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, kinky means “Full of kinks; liable to kink or curl” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in kinky?
| Letters | 5: K-I-N-K-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 2.3 times per million words; the 17,813th 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 kinky?
Kinky appears 2.3 times per million words in written English, the 17,813th 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 kinky?
- /ˈkɪŋki/
Kinky 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: En-au-kinky.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of kinky
- kinkier comparative
- kinkiest superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does kinky mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Full of kinks; liable to kink or curl.
kinky hair
- 2
informalMarked by unconventional sexual preferences or behavior, as fetishism, sadomasochism, and other sexual practices.
- 3
Queer; eccentric; crotchety.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Kinky in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | bouclé, crépu , kinky, pervers , excentrique |
| German | kraus , pervers, verdreht, sexy |
| Portuguese | enrolado , pervertido |
| Spanish | crespo, ensortijado, rizado , pervertido, fetichista , extraño |
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 kinky come from?
From kink + -y. Compare Spanish canquiñi (“nappy”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).