alimony
a·li·mony/ˈæl.ə.moʊ.ni/noun
alimony is spelled A-L-I-M-O-N-Y: 7 letters and 3 syllables (a·li·mony). It appears 1.2 times per million words in written English, the 25,751st most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a derogatory noun, alimony means “A court-mandated allowance made to a former spouse by a divorced or legally separated person” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of alimony is alimonies.
How many letters and syllables are in alimony?
| Letters | 7: A-L-I-M-O-N-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3: a·li·mony |
| In writing | 1.2 times per million words; the 25,751st most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is alimony?
Alimony appears 1.2 times per million words in written English, the 25,751st 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 alimony?
- UK /ˈæl.ɪ.mə.ni/
- US /ˈæl.ə.moʊ.ni/
Alimony has 3 syllables, split a·li·mony in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-alimony.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of alimony
- alimonies plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does alimony mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
derogatoryA court-mandated allowance made to a former spouse by a divorced or legally separated person.
- 2
obsoleteNourishment, sustenance, especially for one's spirit.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Alimony in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense a court-enforced allowance:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | pension alimentaire |
| German | Unterhalt, Alimente |
| Portuguese | pensão alimentícia, pensão |
| Spanish | pensión alimenticia, alimentos, manutención, mantención |
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 alimony come from?
Known since the 17th century, from Latin alimōnia (“food, support, nourishment, sustenance”) (English aliment, as in alimentary), itself from alō (“to nourish”) + -mōnia (“action, state, condition”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).