beholden
be·hol·den/bɪˈhoʊldən/adjective
beholden is spelled B-E-H-O-L-D-E-N: 8 letters and 3 syllables (be·hol·den). It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 36,565th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, beholden means “Obligated to provide, display, or do something for another; indebted, obliged for a bounden duty” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in beholden?
| Letters | 8: B-E-H-O-L-D-E-N |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3: be·hol·den |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 36,565th 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; 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 beholden?
Beholden appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 36,565th 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 beholden?
- UK /bɪˈhəʊldən/
- US /bɪˈhoʊldən/
- Australia /bɪˈhəʉldən/
Beholden has 3 syllables, split be·hol·den in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-au-beholden.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with beholden?
One word on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as beholden from its last stressed vowel (/oʊldən/):
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 beholden
- beholding
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does beholden mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Obligated to provide, display, or do something for another; indebted, obliged for a bounden duty.
From an early age, I had decided I wanted to be beholden to no one.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Beholden in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense obligated, bound by moral obligation:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | redevable |
| German | verpflichtet, gebunden |
| Spanish | comprometido, obligado, endeudado, encalillado, adeudante |
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 beholden come from?
From Middle English biholden (“beholden, obligated”), past participle of biholden (“to behold, look at”, modern behold), though that verb does not mean "to bind, obligate".
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).