Spell Bee Word: Vixen

Basic Details

Word: Vixen

Part of Speech: Noun

Meaning: A female fox.

How to Spell Vixen

Syllables: vix - en

Tricky part: The x does the work of ks on its own, so vicksen is wrong, and the ending is en, not on or an.

Watch out for: vixon, vixan, vicksen

Memory tip: A vixen is a fox, and the two words share the x in the middle. Then end with en, as in oxen.

Usage Examples

Example 1: The vixen led her three cubs out of the den at dusk.

Example 2: A vixen is usually a little smaller than a male fox.

Example 3: From our tent in Ladakh we heard a vixen give a sharp, high scream at night.

Fun Fact

Vixen comes from fixen, an old word for a female fox. People in southern England said f like v, and their way of saying it is the one that lasted.

Practise the CREST Way

Spell-o-Spell

Read the four words. Choose the meaning of the only correctly spelt word:

1. squirel 2. hedgehogg 3. vixen 4. porcupin

a) an animal covered in sharp quills
b) a small spiny animal that rolls up
c) a small tree animal with a bushy tail
d) a female fox, the mother of cubs

Mingle-Mangle

Unjumble the letters in the sentence to form a meaningful word:

A nevix and her cubs were sleeping in a den under the old oak.

a) vexing
b) vixen
c) oxen
d) waxen

Word Cookie

Find the misspelt word in the sentence:

Early one frosty morning, the farmer spotted a vixon slipping quietly through the hedge with one of his speckled hens in her mouth.

a) vixon
b) slipping
c) speckled
d) frosty

Multiple Choice Questions

1. A male fox is often called a ____.

a) bull
b) dog
c) ram
d) stallion

2. Young foxes are called ____.

a) calves
b) foals
c) lambs
d) cubs