spank
/ˈspeɪ̯ŋk/verb, noun
spank is spelled S-P-A-N-K: 5 letters and one syllable. It appears 1.2 times per million words in written English, the 26,092nd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, spank means “To beat, smack or slap a person's buttocks, with the bare hand or other object, as punishment, or for sexual gratification” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in spank?
| Letters | 5: S-P-A-N-K |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 |
| In writing | 1.2 times per million words; the 26,092nd 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 spank?
Spank appears 1.2 times per million words in written English, the 26,092nd 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 spank?
- /ˈspæŋk/
- [ˈspæŋk]
- US /ˈspeɪ̯ŋk/
Spank has one syllable.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-uk-spank.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with spank?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as spank from its last stressed vowel (/eɪŋk/):
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 spank
- spanks present, singular, he/she/it, plural
- spanking participle, present
- spanked participle, past
- spaink
- spenk
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does spank mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To beat, smack or slap a person's buttocks, with the bare hand or other object, as punishment, or for sexual gratification.
- 2
To soundly defeat, to trounce.
- 3
To hit very hard.
Spurs had a free-kick on the edge of the Liverpool box. Érik Lamela spanked it low into the wall, got the ball back, played it out to Christian Eriksen.
- 4
To move quickly and nimbly on foot; to stride or run at a brisk pace.
- 5
To move or turn rapidly, as the gears of a machine or the sails of a ship.
The ship was really spanking along.
- 6
To shoot out or throw violently; to hurl or knock out.
noun
- 1
An instance of spanking, separately or part of a multiple blows-beating; a smack, swat, or slap.
- 2
A slapping sound, as produced by spanking.
- 3
slangAn instance of masturbation.
spank bank
- 4
A leap or bound.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Spank in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | fesser , pan |
| German | auf das Gesäß schlagen, den Hintern versohlen , Klaps |
| Portuguese | surrar , surra |
| Spanish | nalguear, zurrar, azotar, dar paupau, dar pam-pam , nalgada |
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 spank come from?
Uncertain. Possibly imitative, or perhaps a special use of Etymology 2 (below) in the sense of a horse stamping its foot against the ground. There is no evidence of a relation with Portuguese espancar (“to batter, strike”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).