aback

/əˈbæk/adverb

aback is spelled A-B-A-C-K: 5 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 29,270th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adverb, aback means “By surprise; startled; dumbfounded. (see usage)” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).

How many letters and syllables are in aback?

Letters	5: A-B-A-C-K
Syllables	2 (from its American pronunciation)
In writing	about once in every 1 million words; the 29,270th most frequent word form
Wrong spellings searched	none measured in search
Rhymes with	back black attack lack more

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 aback?

Aback appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 29,270th most frequent word form in the list.

aback0.0010.010.11101001,00010,000

rarerper million words of written Englishmore common

Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).

How do you pronounce aback?

UK /əˈbæk/
US /əˈbæk/
/aˈbak/

Aback 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: En-us-aback.ogg, En-ca-aback.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).

Words people confuse with aback

Also written: a-back (one word or two).

Sources: English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).

What rhymes with aback?

The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as aback from its last stressed vowel (/æk/):

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).

What does aback mean?

The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).

adverb

1
archaicTowards the back or rear; backwards.
2
archaicIn the rear; a distance behind.
3
By surprise; startled; dumbfounded. (see usage)
4
Backward against the mast; said of the sails when pressed by the wind from the "wrong" (forward) side, or of a ship when its sails are set that way.

noun

1
obsoleteAn inscribed stone square.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

Aback in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese

Language	Words
French	en arrière (backwards), derrière (in the rear)
German	rückwärts (backwards), hinten (in the rear)
Portuguese	atrás, para trás (backwards)
Spanish	atrás, hacia atrás (backwards)

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 aback come from?

From Middle English abak, from Old English onbæc, equivalent to a- (“towards”) + back. Compare West Frisian tebek (“aback”, adverb, literally “to/at back”), Swedish tillbaka (idem.).