afternoon
/ˌɑːf.təˈnuːn/noun, interjection
afternoon is spelled A-F-T-E-R-N-O-O-N: 9 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 52 times per million words in written English, the 1,941st most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, afternoon means “The part of the day from noon or lunchtime until sunset, evening, or suppertime or 6pm” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of afternoon is afternoons.
How many letters and syllables are in afternoon?
| Letters | 9: A-F-T-E-R-N-O-O-N |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 52 times per million words; the 1,941st most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
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 afternoon?
Afternoon appears 52 times per million words in written English, the 1,941st 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 afternoon?
- UK /ˌɑːf.təˈnuːn/
- /ˌaf.təˈnuːn/
- /ˌaf.təɾˈnʉn/
Afternoon 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-uk-afternoon.ogg, En-us-afternoon.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with afternoon
Also written: aft.
Sources: English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
What rhymes with afternoon?
5 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as afternoon from its last stressed vowel (/un/, British pronunciation):
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).
Forms of afternoon
- afternoons plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does afternoon mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
The part of the day from noon or lunchtime until sunset, evening, or suppertime or 6pm.
- 2
The later part of anything, often with implications of decline.
- 3
informalA party or social event held in the afternoon.
adverb
- 1
archaicIn the afternoon.
interjection
- 1
Ellipsis of good afternoon.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
How do you abbreviate afternoon?
Wiktionary records one abbreviation of afternoon: aftn..
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Afternoon in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense part of the day between noon and evening:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | après-midi |
| German | Nachmittag |
| Portuguese | tarde |
| Spanish | tarde |
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 afternoon come from?
From Middle English afternone, after-non, equivalent to after- + noon.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).