balkanize
/ˈbɔːl.kə.naɪz/verb
balkanize is spelled B-A-L-K-A-N-I-Z-E: 9 letters and 3 syllables. It appears about once in every 62 million words in written English, the 246,401st most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, balkanize means “Alternative letter-case form of Balkanize” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in balkanize?
| Letters | 9: B-A-L-K-A-N-I-Z-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 62 million words; the 246,401st 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 balkanize?
Balkanize appears about once in every 62 million words in written English, the 246,401st 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 balkanize?
- UK /ˈbɔːl.kə.naɪz/
Balkanize 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)-Scelultrix-Balkanize.wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Zazollo-Balkanize.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of balkanize
- balkanise
- balkanizes present, singular, he/she/it
- balkanizing participle, present
- balkanized participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does balkanize mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
Alternative letter-case form of Balkanize.
verb
- 1
To break up into small, mutually-hostile units, especially on a political basis.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Balkanize in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense to break up:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | balkaniser |
| German | zersplittern, balkanisieren |
| Portuguese | balcanizar |
| Spanish | balcanizar |
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 balkanize come from?
From Balkan + -ize.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).