shrewish
/ˈʃɹuː.ɪʃ/adjective
shrewish is spelled S-H-R-E-W-I-S-H: 8 letters. It appears about once in every 30 million words in written English, the 165,739th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, shrewish means “Of or pertaining to a shrew (a nagging, ill-tempered woman)” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in shrewish?
| Letters | 8: S-H-R-E-W-I-S-H |
|---|---|
| In writing | about once in every 30 million words; the 165,739th 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 shrewish?
Shrewish appears about once in every 30 million words in written English, the 165,739th 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 shrewish?
- /ˈʃɹuː.ɪʃ/
- /ˈʃɹɪu̯.ɪʃ/
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Neøn-shrewish.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of shrewish
- more shrewish comparative
- most shrewish superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does shrewish mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Of or pertaining to a shrew (a nagging, ill-tempered woman).
- 2
Bad-tempered; ill-natured; obstinate, as a shrew.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Shrewish in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense of or pertaining to a shrew (ill-tempered, nagging woman):
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | acariâtre |
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 shrewish come from?
From shrew + -ish. Compare Middle English schrewis, shrewessh, shrewyssh (“wicked, malignant”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).