oyez
o·yez/ˈəʊˌjeɪ/interjection, noun, verb
oyez is spelled O-Y-E-Z: 4 letters and 2 syllables (o·yez). It appears about once in every 26 million words in written English, the 154,067th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an interjection, oyez means “Hear ye. Attend. (Called by public criers or in court usually three times to secure silence or attentiveness)” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in oyez?
| Letters | 4: O-Y-E-Z |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: o·yez |
| In writing | about once in every 26 million words; the 154,067th 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 oyez?
Oyez appears about once in every 26 million words in written English, the 154,067th 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 oyez?
- UK /ˈəʊˌjeɪ/
- /oʊˈjeɪ/
- /oʊˈjɛs/
Oyez has 2 syllables, split o·yez in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-oyez.wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-oyez2.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of oyez
- oyes
- oyezes plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does oyez mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
interjection
- 1
Hear ye. Attend. (Called by public criers or in court usually three times to secure silence or attentiveness).
noun
- 1
A cry of oyez.
verb
- 1
rareTo proclaim with a cry of oyez.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Where does oyez come from?
From Middle English oyes, from Old French oyez, the imperative plural of oir (“to hear; to listen”), from Latin audīre. Commonly folk-etymologized as (and pronounced homophonously to) O + yes in the early modern period.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).