tantivy
/tænˈtɪvi/noun, verb
tantivy is spelled T-A-N-T-I-V-Y: 7 letters. It appears about once in every 78 million words in written English, the 279,513th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, tantivy means “The sound of a hunting horn in imitation of a galloping horse” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of tantivy is tantivies.
How many letters and syllables are in tantivy?
| Letters | 7: T-A-N-T-I-V-Y |
|---|---|
| In writing | about once in every 78 million words; the 279,513th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
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).
How common is tantivy?
Tantivy appears about once in every 78 million words in written English, the 279,513th 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 tantivy?
- /tænˈtɪvi/
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Forms of tantivy
- tantivies plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- tantivying participle, present
- tantivied participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does tantivy mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
obsoleteA rapid gallop
a. 1658, John Cleveland, letter to a Parliament Officer at Grantham Sir , I expected to hear from you in the Language of the lost Groat , and the Prodigal Son , and not in such a Tantivy of Language
- 2
informalThe sound of a hunting horn in imitation of a galloping horse
verb
- 1
To hurry off.
adverb
- 1
obsoleteAt full tilt
Fryar John began to paw, neigh and whinny at the Snout's end, as one ready to leap, or at least to play the Ass, and get up and ride tantivy to the Devil like a Beggar on Horseback.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Where does tantivy come from?
A fox-hunting term, said to be from the note of a hunting horn.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).