skunk
/skʌŋk/noun, verb
skunk is spelled S-K-U-N-K: 5 letters and one syllable. It appears 1.3 times per million words in written English, the 25,367th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, skunk means “Any of various mammals of the subfamily Mephitinae, native to North and Central America, having a glossy black coat with white markings and two musk…” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of skunk is skunks.
How many letters and syllables are in skunk?
| Letters | 5: S-K-U-N-K |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.3 times per million words; the 25,367th 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 skunk?
Skunk appears 1.3 times per million words in written English, the 25,367th 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 skunk?
- /skʌŋk/
Skunk has one syllable (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: En-au-skunk.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of skunk
- skunks plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- scunck
- skunking participle, present
- skunked participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does skunk mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
USAny of various mammals of the subfamily Mephitinae, native to North and Central America, having a glossy black coat with white markings and two musk glands at the base of the tail for emitting a noxious smell as a defensive measure.
- 2
USdatedderogatoryslangA despicable person.
- 3
USdatedderogatoryslangAnything very bad; a stinker.
- 4
USslangA walkover victory in sports or board games, as when the opposing side is unable to score.
- 5
USA win by thirty or more points. (A double skunk is sixty or more, a triple skunk ninety or more.)
- 6
USA member of a hybrid skinhead and punk subculture.
- 7
USslangClipping of skunkweed, type of marijuana.
- 8
USAny of the strains of hybrids of Cannabis sativa and Cannabis indica that may have THC levels exceeding those of typical hashish.
verb
- 1
USTo spray someone with a strong-smelling liquid.
- 2
USslangTo defeat so badly as to prevent any opposing points.
I skunked him at cards.
- 3
USTo win by thirty or more points.
- 4
USTo go bad, to spoil.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Skunk in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | mouffette, sconse, putois , salaud, mufle, canaille |
| German | Stinktier, Skunk |
| Portuguese | cangambá, gambá, doninha-fedorenta , camelo |
| Spanish | mofeta, zorro hediondo, zorrillo, zorrino, chingue, yaguané |
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 skunk come from?
Borrowed from an unattested Southern New England Eastern Algonquian word cognate with Abenaki segôgw (literally “he who squirts (musk) / urinates”), from Proto-Algonquian *šeka·kwa, from *šek- (“to urinate”). Doublet of Chicago.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).