pang
/ˈpeɪ̯ŋ/noun, verb
pang is spelled P-A-N-G: 4 letters and one syllable. It appears 1.3 times per million words in written English, the 25,070th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data, counting Pang, the name). As a noun, pang means “A paroxysm of extreme physical pain or anguish; a feeling of sudden and transitory agony; a throe” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of pang is pangs.
How many letters and syllables are in pang?
| Letters | 4: P-A-N-G |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 |
| In writing | 1.3 times per million words; the 25,070th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
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); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is pang?
Pang appears 1.3 times per million words in written English, the 25,070th most frequent word form in the list. The list counts every capitalisation together, so this includes Pang, the name.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce pang?
- /ˈpæŋ/
- [ˈpʰæŋ]
- US /ˈpeɪ̯ŋ/
Pang has one syllable.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-au-pang.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with pang?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as pang from its last stressed vowel (/eɪŋ/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of pang
- pangs plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- panging participle, present
- panged participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does pang mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A paroxysm of extreme physical pain or anguish; a feeling of sudden and transitory agony; a throe.
- 2
A sudden sharp feeling of an emotional or mental nature, as of joy or sorrow.
verb
- 1
To cause to have great pain or suffering; to torment, to torture.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Pang in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| German | Schmerz, Stechen , Anfall, Stich |
| Spanish | punzada, cimbrón, puntada, pinchazo, picada, piquete |
| Portuguese | surto |
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 pang come from?
The origin of the noun is uncertain; it is possibly derived from Middle English *pange, perhaps an altered form of prange, prōnge (“affliction, agony, pain; pointed instrument”) as in prongys of deth (“pangs of death, death throes”), from Anglo-Latin pronga, of unknown origin. Perhaps connected with Middle Dutch prange, pranghe (“instrument for pinching”) (modern Dutch prang (“horse restraint; fetter, neck iron”)), Middle Low German prange (“pole, stake; (possibly) kind of pillory or stocks”), Old English pyngan (“to prick”). The word may thus be related to prong.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).