smocking
smock·ing/ˈsmɑkɪŋ/noun, verb
smocking is spelled S-M-O-C-K-I-N-G: 8 letters and 2 syllables (smock·ing). It appears about once in every 30 million words in written English, the 167,786th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, smocking means “An embroidery technique in which the fabric is gathered and then embroidered with decorative stitches to hold the gathers in place; the product of…” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of smocking is smockings.
How many letters and syllables are in smocking?
| Letters | 8: S-M-O-C-K-I-N-G |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: smock·ing |
| In writing | about once in every 30 million words; the 167,786th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
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); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is smocking?
Smocking appears about once in every 30 million words in written English, the 167,786th 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 smocking?
- UK /ˈsmɒkɪŋ/
- US /ˈsmɑkɪŋ/
Smocking has 2 syllables, split smock·ing in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-uk-smocking.oga, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with smocking?
7 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as smocking from its last stressed vowel (/ɑkɪŋ/):
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 smocking
- smockings plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does smocking mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
An embroidery technique in which the fabric is gathered and then embroidered with decorative stitches to hold the gathers in place; the product of the use of this embroidery technique.
verb
- 1
present participle and gerund of smock
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Smocking in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense embroidery technique in which the fabric is gathered and embroidered with decora:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | nid d'abeilles |
| German | Smokarbeit |
| Spanish | nido de abeja |
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 smocking come from?
From smock + -ing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).