pachyderm
/ˈpæk.ɪˌdɜː(ɹ)m/noun
pachyderm is spelled P-A-C-H-Y-D-E-R-M: 9 letters and 3 syllables. It appears about once in every 16 million words in written English, the 119,826th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, pachyderm means “An elephant” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of pachyderm is pachyderms.
How many letters and syllables are in pachyderm?
| Letters | 9: P-A-C-H-Y-D-E-R-M |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 16 million words; the 119,826th 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 pachyderm?
Pachyderm appears about once in every 16 million words in written English, the 119,826th 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 pachyderm?
- UK /ˈpæk.ɪˌdɜː(ɹ)m/
Pachyderm has 3 syllables (counted from the pronunciation).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-pachyderm.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of pachyderm
- pachyderms plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does pachyderm mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
obsoleteA member of the obsolete taxonomic order Pachydermata, grouping of thick-skinned, hoofed animals such as the rhinoceros, hippopotamus, elephant and tapir.
- 2
informalAn elephant.
- 3
A person with thick skin; someone who is not affected by or does not care what others say about them.
- 4
Someone who is insensitive.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Pachyderm in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense member of the group Pachydermata:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | pachyderme |
| German | Dickhäuter |
| Portuguese | paquiderme |
| Spanish | paquidermo |
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 pachyderm come from?
Borrowed from French pachyderme, equivalent to pachy- (“thick”) + -derm (“skin”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).