squamous
/ˈskweɪ.məs/adjective
squamous is spelled S-Q-U-A-M-O-U-S: 8 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 44,209th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, squamous means “Covered with, made of, or resembling scales; scaly” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in squamous?
| Letters | 8: S-Q-U-A-M-O-U-S |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 44,209th 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 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 squamous?
Squamous appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 44,209th 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 squamous?
- UK /ˈskweɪ.məs/
- US /ˈskweɪ.məs/
- US /ˈskwɑː.məs/
Squamous has 2 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-squamous.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with squamous?
One word on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as squamous from its last stressed vowel (/eɪməs/):
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 squamous
- more squamous comparative
- most squamous superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does squamous mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Covered with, made of, or resembling scales; scaly.
- 2
Of or pertaining to the squamosal bone; squamosal
- 3
Of or pertaining to an epithelium with cells that are wider than their height (flat and scale-like).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Squamous in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense scaly:
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 squamous come from?
From Middle English squamous, from Latin squāmōsus, from squāma (“scale(of a fish or reptile)”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).