benign
/bɪˈnaɪn/adjective
benign is spelled B-E-N-I-G-N: 6 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 3.2 times per million words in written English, the 14,731st most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, benign means “Kind; gentle; mild” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in benign?
| Letters | 6: B-E-N-I-G-N |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 3.2 times per million words; the 14,731st 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 benign?
Benign appears 3.2 times per million words in written English, the 14,731st 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 benign?
- US /bɪˈnaɪn/
- Australia /bɪˈnɑen/
Benign 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-benign.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with benign?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as benign from its last stressed vowel (/aɪn/):
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 benign
- benigner comparative
- more benign comparative
- benignest superlative
- most benign superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does benign mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Kind; gentle; mild.
- 2
Of a climate or environment, mild and favorable.
- 3
Not harmful to the environment.
an ozone-benign refrigerant
- 4
Not posing any serious threat to health; not particularly aggressive or recurrent.
a benign tumor
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Benign in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | bénin |
| German | freundlich, gütig, liebevoll , gutartig |
| Portuguese | benigno |
| Spanish | benigno |
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 benign come from?
From Middle English benigne, benygne, from Old French benigne, from Latin benignus (“kind, good”), from bene (“well”) + genus (“origin, kind”). Compare malign.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).