sex

/ˈsɛks/noun, verb

sex is spelled S-E-X: 3 letters and one syllable. It appears 166 times per million words in written English, the 611th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, sex means “A category into which sexually-reproducing organisms are divided on the basis of their reproductive roles in their species; the system of such…” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of sex is sexes.

How many letters and syllables are in sex?

Letters	3: S-E-X
Syllables	1
In writing	166 times per million words; the 611th most frequent word form
Wrong spellings searched	none measured in search
Pairs people search	s-e-x vs sex
Sounds like	secs
Rhymes with	complex lex perplex

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); 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); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.

How common is sex?

Sex appears 166 times per million words in written English, the 611th most frequent word form in the list.

sex0.0010.010.11101001,00010,000

rarerper million words of written Englishmore common

Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).

How do you pronounce sex?

US /ˈsɛks/
Australia /ˈseks/

Sex has one syllable.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-sex.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).

Words people confuse with sex

Word pairs people search, with the monthly searches for “a vs b” (G: Google, B: Bing, United States).

s-e-x vs sex0 B

Sounds like: secs (Wiktionary's homophone list; some hold only in some accents).

Also written: drugs, sex and rock 'n' roll, s-e-x (one word or two), sect.

Sources: Google and Bing searches (September 2025 to August 2026, through DataForSEO); English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).

What rhymes with sex?

3 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as sex from its last stressed vowel (/ɛks/):

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 sex

sexes plural, present, singular, he/she/it
s*x
sexing participle, present
sexed participle, past

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What does sex mean?

The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).

noun

1
A category into which sexually-reproducing organisms are divided on the basis of their reproductive roles in their species; the system of such categories, which can differ by organism or by taxonomic branch.
The effect of the medication is dependent upon age, sex, and other factors.
2
Another category, especially of humans and especially based on sexuality or gender roles.
3
The members of such a category, taken collectively.
4
The distinction and relation between these categories, especially in humans; gender.
5
obsoleteWomen; the human female gender and those who belong to it.
6
Sexual activity, may be understood to be sexual intercourse unless preceded by a modifier.
The Believers must (eventually) win through,–Those who humble themselves In their prayers; Who avoid vain talk; Who are active in deeds Of charity; Who abstain from sex, Except with those joined To them in the marriage bond, Or (the captive
7
slangGenitalia: a penis or vagina/vulva.
8
obsoleteAny kind of category, class, or community of people who possess shared characteristics, such as religion or race.

verb

1
To determine the sex of (an animal).
2
UScolloquialTo have sex with.
3
UScolloquialTo have sex.