approximant
/əˈpɹɑksəmənt/noun
approximant is spelled A-P-P-R-O-X-I-M-A-N-T: 11 letters. It appears about once in every 31 million words in written English, the 169,822nd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, approximant means “A consonant sound made by slightly narrowing the vocal tract, while still allowing a smooth flow of air. Liquids and glides are approximants” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of approximant is approximants.
How many letters and syllables are in approximant?
| Letters | 11: A-P-P-R-O-X-I-M-A-N-T |
|---|---|
| In writing | about once in every 31 million words; the 169,822nd 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 approximant?
Approximant appears about once in every 31 million words in written English, the 169,822nd 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 approximant?
- US /əˈpɹɑksəmənt/
- UK /əˈpɹɒksɪmənt/
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-approximant.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of approximant
- approximants plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does approximant mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A consonant sound made by slightly narrowing the vocal tract, while still allowing a smooth flow of air. Liquids and glides are approximants.
- 2
An approximation to the solution of a function, series, etc.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Approximant in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense consonant made by slightly narrowing the vocal tract:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | spirante, approximante |
| German | Approximant, Näherungslaut |
| Portuguese | aproximante |
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 approximant come from?
From Latin approximāns. In the phonetics sense first used by Peter Ladefoged, the mathematical concept is attributed to Paul Halmos.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).