belittle
/bɪˈlɪt.əl/verb
belittle is spelled B-E-L-I-T-T-L-E: 8 letters and 3 syllables. It appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 34,504th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, belittle means “To disparage, depreciate, or minimize the importance, value, merit, or significance of someone or something” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in belittle?
| Letters | 8: B-E-L-I-T-T-L-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 1 million words; the 34,504th 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 belittle?
Belittle appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 34,504th 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 belittle?
- US /bɪˈlɪt.əl/
Belittle 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: En-us-belittle.ogg, En-au-belittle.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with belittle?
2 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as belittle from its last stressed vowel (/ɪtəl/):
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 belittle
- belittles present, singular, he/she/it
- belittling participle, present
- belittled participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does belittle mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To disparage, depreciate, or minimize the importance, value, merit, or significance of someone or something.
Don't belittle your colleagues.
- 2
To make small.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Belittle in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense to knowingly say that something is smaller or less important than it actually is:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | déprécier, rabaisser |
| German | schmälern, herunterspielen, herabsetzen, kleinreden, verniedlichen |
| Portuguese | depreciar |
| Spanish | menospreciar, minimizar, disminuir, empequeñecer |
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 belittle come from?
From be- + little. Coined by Thomas Jefferson in 1782.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).