benchmark
bench·mark/ˈbɛnt͡ʃmɑɹk/noun, verb
benchmark is spelled B-E-N-C-H-M-A-R-K: 9 letters and 2 syllables (bench·mark). It appears 4.0 times per million words in written English, the 12,940th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, benchmark means “A standard by which something is evaluated or measured” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of benchmark is benchmarks.
How many letters and syllables are in benchmark?
| Letters | 9: B-E-N-C-H-M-A-R-K |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: bench·mark |
| In writing | 4.0 times per million words; the 12,940th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
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).
How common is benchmark?
Benchmark appears 4.0 times per million words in written English, the 12,940th 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 benchmark?
- UK /ˈbɛnt͡ʃmɑːk/
- US /ˈbɛnt͡ʃmɑɹk/
- Australia /ˈbent͡ʃmɐːk/
Benchmark has 2 syllables, split bench·mark in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vininn126-benchmark.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with benchmark
Also written: bench mark (one word or two).
Sources: English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
Forms of benchmark
- benchmarks plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- bench mark
- benchmarking participle, present
- benchmarked participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does benchmark mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A standard by which something is evaluated or measured.
Near-synonym: criterion
- 2
A surveyor's mark made on some stationary object and shown on a map; used as a reference point.
Near-synonym: datum
- 3
A computer program that is executed to assess the performance of the runtime environment.
verb
- 1
To give certain results in a benchmark test.
- 2
To use something (e.g., a competitor's product) as a standard to improve one's own thing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Benchmark in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | critère, aune, étalon , point de référence, repère , banc d'essai |
| German | Maßstab, Höhenfestpunkt, Kriterium |
| Portuguese | padrão , ponto de referência |
| Spanish | cota de referencia, estándar de comparación, acotación referencial, marca comparativa , marca topográfica, punto de referencia |
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 benchmark come from?
From bench + mark. First use appears c. 1842. Originally a mark cut into a stone by land surveyors to secure a bench (from land surveying jargon in the 19th century, meaning a type of bracket), to mount measuring equipment. The figurative sense first appears c. 1884.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).