pack
/pæk/noun, verb
pack is spelled P-A-C-K: 4 letters and one syllable. It appears 46 times per million words in written English, the 2,204th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, pack means “A bundle made up and prepared to be carried; especially, a bundle to be carried on the back, but also a load for an animal, a bale” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of pack is packs.
How many letters and syllables are in pack?
| Letters | 4: P-A-C-K |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 46 times per million words; the 2,204th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Pairs people 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); Bing searches in the United States: the average month from September 2025 to August 2026 (Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, read September 30, 2026).
How common is pack?
Pack appears 46 times per million words in written English, the 2,204th 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 pack?
- /pæk/
- [pʰæk]
Pack 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: En-au-pack.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with pack
Word pairs people search, with the monthly searches for “a vs b” (G: Google, B: Bing, United States).
Sources: Google and Bing searches (September 2025 to August 2026, through DataForSEO); English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
Forms of pack
- packs plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- packing participle, present
- packed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does pack mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A bundle made up and prepared to be carried; especially, a bundle to be carried on the back, but also a load for an animal, a bale.
The horses carried the packs across the plain.
- 2
A number or quantity equal to the contents of a pack
- 3
A multitude.
a pack of lies
- 4
A number or quantity of connected or similar things; a collective.
- 5
A full set of playing cards
We were going to play cards, but nobody brought a pack.
- 6
The assortment of playing cards used in a particular game.
cut the pack
- 7
A group of hounds or dogs, hunting or living together.
- 8
A group of wolves, hunting together.
verb
- 1
To make a pack of; to arrange closely and securely in a pack; hence, to place and arrange compactly as in a pack
to pack goods in a box; to pack fish
- 2
To fill in the manner of a pack, that is, compactly and securely, as for transportation; hence, to fill closely or to repletion; to stow away within; to cause to be full; to crowd into.
to pack a trunk; the play, or the audience, packs the theater
- 3
To wrap in a wet or dry sheet, within numerous coverings.
The doctor gave Kelly some sulfa pills and packed his arm in hot-water bags.
- 4
To make impervious, such as by filling or surrounding with suitable material, or to fit or adjust so as to move without allowing air, water, or steam inside.
to pack a joint; to pack the piston of a steam engine; pack someone's arm with ice.
- 5
To make up packs, bales, or bundles; to stow articles securely for transportation.
- 6
To form a compact mass, especially in order for transportation.
the goods pack conveniently; wet snow packs well
- 7
To gather together in flocks, herds, schools or similar groups of animals.
the grouse or the perch begin to pack
- 8
To combine (telegraph messages) in order to send them more cheaply as a single transmission.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
How do you abbreviate pack?
Wiktionary records 2 abbreviations of pack: LAP, pk.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Pack in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | pack, paquet , meute , emballer |
| German | Pack, Packung, Bündel , Rudel , Kartenspiel, Kartenstapel |
| Portuguese | fardo , matilha , baralho , fazer |
| Spanish | cajetilla, bojote, paca, joto, pack , baraja |
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 pack come from?
From Middle English pak, pakke, from Old English *pæcca and/or Middle Dutch pak, packe; both ultimately from Proto-West Germanic *pakkō, from Proto-Germanic *pakkô (“bundle, pack”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).