abolish
/əˈbɑl.ɪʃ/verb
abolish is spelled A-B-O-L-I-S-H: 7 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 3.0 times per million words in written English, the 15,368th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, abolish means “To end a law, system, institution, custom or practice” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in abolish?
| Letters | 7: A-B-O-L-I-S-H |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 3.0 times per million words; the 15,368th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
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).
How common is abolish?
Abolish appears 3.0 times per million words in written English, the 15,368th 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 abolish?
- UK /əˈbɒl.ɪʃ/
- US /əˈbɑl.ɪʃ/
- US /əˈbɑl.əʃ/
Abolish has 3 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-abolish.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of abolish
- abolishes present, singular, he/she/it
- abolishing participle, present
- abolished participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does abolish mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To end a law, system, institution, custom or practice.
Slavery was abolished in the nineteenth century.
- 2
archaicTo put an end to or destroy, as a physical object; to wipe out.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Abolish in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | abolir, supprimer , détruire |
| German | abschaffen, aufheben , vernichten |
| Portuguese | abolir, suprimir , destroçar, arrasar, acabar com |
| Spanish | abolir, suprimir, abrogar, quitar , destrozar |
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 abolish come from?
From late Middle English abolisshen, from Middle French aboliss-, extended stem of abolir, from Latin abolēre (“to retard, check the growth of, (and by extension) destroy, abolish”), and inchoative abolēscere (“to wither, vanish, cease”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).