affable
/ˈæf.ə.bəl/adjective
affable is spelled A-F-F-A-B-L-E: 7 letters and 3 syllables. It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 43,663rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, affable means “Receiving others kindly and conversing with them in a free and friendly manner; friendly, courteous, sociable” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in affable?
| Letters | 7: A-F-F-A-B-L-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 43,663rd 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 affable?
Affable appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 43,663rd 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 affable?
- US /ˈæf.ə.bəl/
Affable 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-affable.ogg, En-au-affable.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of affable
- more affable comparative
- most affable superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does affable mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Receiving others kindly and conversing with them in a free and friendly manner; friendly, courteous, sociable.
- 2
Mild; benign.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Affable in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | aimable , doux |
| German | umgänglich, affabel, freundlich, nett, leutselig |
| Portuguese | afável |
| Spanish | afable |
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 affable come from?
Borrowed from French affable, from Latin affābilis, from affor (“to address”), from ad + for (“to speak, to talk”). See fable. By surface analysis, af- + fable.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).