sinewy
/ˈsɪnjuːi/adjective
sinewy is spelled S-I-N-E-W-Y: 6 letters and 3 syllables. It appears about once in every 9 million words in written English, the 87,317th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, sinewy means “Tough; having strong sinews” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in sinewy?
| Letters | 6: S-I-N-E-W-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 9 million words; the 87,317th 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 sinewy?
Sinewy appears about once in every 9 million words in written English, the 87,317th 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 sinewy?
- /ˈsɪnjuːi/
Sinewy 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-sinewy.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of sinewy
- more sinewy comparative
- most sinewy superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does sinewy mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Tough; having strong sinews.
- 2
Having or showing nervous strength.
- 3
Possessing physical strength and weight; rugged and powerful.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Sinewy in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
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 sinewy come from?
Inherited from Middle English synwy, synewy, synowy (“tendonous”); equivalent to sinew + -y.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).