athletic
/æθˈlɛt.ɪk/adjective, noun
athletic is spelled A-T-H-L-E-T-I-C: 8 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 13 times per million words in written English, the 5,878th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, athletic means “Having to do with athletes” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in athletic?
| Letters | 8: A-T-H-L-E-T-I-C |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 13 times per million words; the 5,878th 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 athletic?
Athletic appears 13 times per million words in written English, the 5,878th 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 athletic?
- UK /æθˈlɛt.ɪk/
Athletic 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: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-athletic.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with athletic?
6 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as athletic from its last stressed vowel (/ɛtɪk/, 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 athletic
- more athletic comparative
- most athletic superlative
- athletics plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does athletic mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Having to do with athletes.
Are you a member of the American Athletic Association?
- 2
Physically active.
Since you're such an athletic person, you may wish to consider joining.
- 3
Having a muscular, well developed body, being in shape.
You have such an athletic build–you must work out regularly.
- 4
An attribute of a motion or play which requires fine physical ability.
The center fielder made an athletic play to snatch the ball from over the fence.
- 5
Of a level in a Super Mario game: with an emphasis on platforming challenge, often involving precise jumps between floating platforms above a bottomless pit, and having upbeat background music.
noun
- 1
A muscular, large–boned person, in the typology of Ernst Kretschmer.
noun
- 1
A player on the team Oakland Athletics.
Smith became an Athletic as a result of a pre-season trade.
- 2
Short for Athletic Club, a Spanish professional club more often known in English as Athletic Bilbao.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Athletic in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense having to do with athletes:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | athlétique, sportif |
| German | athletisch, sportlich |
| Portuguese | atlético |
| Spanish | atlético |
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.