safeword
noun, verb
safeword is spelled S-A-F-E-W-O-R-D: 8 letters. It appears about once in every 32 million words in written English, the 171,907th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, safeword means “A word used in sexual practices (especially sadomasochistic ones) to unambiguously indicate that a participant actually desires the activity to cease…” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of safeword is safewords.
How many letters and syllables are in safeword?
| Letters | 8: S-A-F-E-W-O-R-D |
|---|---|
| In writing | about once in every 32 million words; the 171,907th 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 safeword?
Safeword appears about once in every 32 million words in written English, the 171,907th 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 safeword?
- US
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Flame,_not_lame-safeword.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of safeword
- safewords plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- safe word
- safewording participle, present
- safeworded participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does safeword mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A word used in sexual practices (especially sadomasochistic ones) to unambiguously indicate that a participant actually desires the activity to cease and is not merely feigning a lack of consent.
- 2
A word used to confirm one's identity; a password.
verb
- 1
To stop a sex act by using a safeword.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Safeword in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense a word used to indicate that a participant wants to stop:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | mot de sécurité |
| German | Safeword |
| Portuguese | palavra de segurança |
| Spanish | palabra segura f palabra de seguridad |
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 safeword come from?
From safe + word.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).