snipe
/snaɪp/noun, verb
snipe is spelled S-N-I-P-E: 5 letters and one syllable. It appears 1.1 times per million words in written English, the 27,462nd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, snipe means “Any of various limicoline game birds of the genera Gallinago, Lymnocryptes and Coenocorypha in the family Scolopacidae, having a long, slender…” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of snipe is snipes.
How many letters and syllables are in snipe?
| Letters | 5: S-N-I-P-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.1 times per million words; the 27,462nd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Same letters |
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); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is snipe?
Snipe appears 1.1 times per million words in written English, the 27,462nd 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 snipe?
- /snaɪp/
Snipe 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-snipe.ogg, LL-Q1860_(eng)-I_learned_some_phrases-snipe.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with snipe?
No other word on PlainSpell ends in the same sounds as snipe.
Spelled with the same letters in another order: penis, spine.
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 snipe
- snipes plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- sniping participle, present
- sniped participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does snipe mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
Any of various limicoline game birds of the genera Gallinago, Lymnocryptes and Coenocorypha in the family Scolopacidae, having a long, slender, nearly straight beak.
- 2
A fool; a blockhead.
- 3
A shot fired from a concealed place.
- 4
slangA member of the engineering department on a ship.
- 5
slangA goal.
- 6
slangA cigarette butt.
- 7
An end of a log remaining after timber has been cut away.
- 8
An animated promotional logo during a television show.
- 9
A strip of copy announcing some late breaking news or item of interest, typically placed in a print advertisement in such a way that it stands out from the ad.
- 10
A bottle of wine measuring 0.1875 liters, one fourth the volume of a standard bottle; a quarter bottle or piccolo.
- 11
A sharp, clever answer; sarcasm.
- 12
A note or sticker attached to an existing poster to provide further information (e.g. an event is sold out, political criticism, etc.).
verb
- 1
To hunt snipe.
- 2
To shoot at individuals from a concealed place.
- 3
To shoot with a sniper rifle.
- 4
To watch a timed online auction and place a winning bid against (the current high bidder) at the last possible moment.
I am the type who is liable to snipe you With two seconds left to go, whoa.
- 5
To nose (a log) to make it drag or slip easily in skidding.
- 6
slangTo score a goal.
- 7
To move the ball quickly in a different direction.
- 8
To make malicious, underhand remarks or attacks.
- 9
To attach a note or sticker to (an existing poster) to provide further information, political criticism, etc.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Snipe in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | bécassine |
| German | Schnepfe |
| Portuguese | narceja , bobo, tolo |
| Spanish | agachadiza, agachona, becacina, becardón, caica |
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 snipe come from?
From Middle English snipe, snype (“a type of bird”), from Old Norse snípa, as in mýrisnípa (“moor snipe”). Akin to Norwegian snipe.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).