bantam
/ˈbæntəm/noun, adjective
bantam is spelled B-A-N-T-A-M: 6 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 37,459th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, bantam means “Any of several small chickens, especially of a breed that is a miniature version of another breed” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of bantam is bantams.
How many letters and syllables are in bantam?
| Letters | 6: B-A-N-T-A-M |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 37,459th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Same letters |
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 bantam?
Bantam appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 37,459th 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 bantam?
- /ˈbæntəm/
Bantam has 2 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-bantam.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with bantam?
No other word on PlainSpell ends in the same sounds as bantam.
Spelled with the same letters in another order: batman.
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 bantam
- bantams plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does bantam mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
Any of several small chickens, especially of a breed that is a miniature version of another breed.
- 2
A competitor in an age division between peewee and midget.
- 3
informala postage stamp much smaller than usual, noteably the UK 1870 halfpenny, and some WW2 era South African issues.
- 4
UKinformala member of special World War I infantry units composed of men who were shorter than the standard military height requirement
adjective
- 1
Small or miniature.
- 2
Spirited or aggressive.
noun
- 1
Someone connected with Bradford City A.F.C, as a fan, player, coach etc.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Bantam in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
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 bantam come from?
Borrowed from Dutch Bantam (Banten province in Java).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).