bildungsroman
/ˈbɪl.dʊŋzˌɹoʊ.mən/noun
bildungsroman is spelled B-I-L-D-U-N-G-S-R-O-M-A-N: 13 letters. It appears about once in every 13 million words in written English, the 110,368th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, bildungsroman means “A novel tracing the spiritual, moral, psychological, or social development and growth of the main character, usually from childhood to maturity” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of bildungsroman is bildungsromans or bildungsromane.
How many letters and syllables are in bildungsroman?
| Letters | 13: B-I-L-D-U-N-G-S-R-O-M-A-N |
|---|---|
| In writing | about once in every 13 million words; the 110,368th 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 bildungsroman?
Bildungsroman appears about once in every 13 million words in written English, the 110,368th 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 bildungsroman?
- /ˈbɪl.dʊŋzˌɹoʊ.mən/
- /ˈbɪl.dʊŋz.ɹoʊˌmɑːn/
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Forms of bildungsroman
- bildungsromans plural
- bildungsromane plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does bildungsroman mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A novel tracing the spiritual, moral, psychological, or social development and growth of the main character, usually from childhood to maturity.
noun
- 1
Alternative letter-case form of bildungsroman.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Bildungsroman in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense a type of novel:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | roman d'apprentissage, bildungsroman |
| German | Bildungsroman |
| Spanish | novela de aprendizaje, novela de formación |
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 bildungsroman come from?
Borrowed from German Bildungsroman, from Bildung (“education, formation”) + -s- + Roman (“novel”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).