pickpocket
/ˈpɪkpɒkɪt/noun, verb
pickpocket is spelled P-I-C-K-P-O-C-K-E-T: 10 letters and 3 syllables. It appears about once in every 3 million words in written English, the 52,954th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, pickpocket means “One who steals from the pocket of a passerby, usually by sleight of hand” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of pickpocket is pickpockets.
How many letters and syllables are in pickpocket?
| Letters | 10: P-I-C-K-P-O-C-K-E-T |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 3 million words; the 52,954th 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 pickpocket?
Pickpocket appears about once in every 3 million words in written English, the 52,954th 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 pickpocket?
- UK /ˈpɪkpɒkɪt/
Pickpocket has 3 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: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-pickpocket.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with pickpocket
Also written: pick-pocket (one word or two).
Sources: English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
Forms of pickpocket
- pickpockets plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- pick-pocket
- pickpocketing participle, present
- pickpocketed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does pickpocket mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
One who steals from the pocket of a passerby, usually by sleight of hand.
verb
- 1
To pick pockets; to steal.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Pickpocket in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | pickpocket, voleur à la tire |
| German | Taschendieb, Taschendiebin , bestehlen, Taschendiebstahl machen |
| Portuguese | punguista, batedor de carteira, carteirista , punguear, bater carteira |
| Spanish | carterista, bolsista, punguista, chorizo, punga , bolsear |
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 pickpocket come from?
From pick + pocket.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).