bravo
/ˈbɹɑvoʊ/noun, interjection, verb
bravo is spelled B-R-A-V-O: 5 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 5.9 times per million words in written English, the 10,028th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, bravo means “A hired soldier; an assassin; a desperado” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of bravo is bravos or bravoes.
How many letters and syllables are in bravo?
| Letters | 5: B-R-A-V-O |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 5.9 times per million words; the 10,028th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
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).
How common is bravo?
Bravo appears 5.9 times per million words in written English, the 10,028th 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 bravo?
- US /ˈbɹɑvoʊ/
- US /bɹɑˈvoʊ/
- UK /ˈbɹɑːvəʊ/
Bravo 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: En-ca-bravo.oga, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of bravo
- bravos plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- bravoes plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- bravi plural
- bravo!
- bravoing participle, present
- bravoed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does bravo mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A hired soldier; an assassin; a desperado.
- 2
A shout of "bravo!"
- 3
Alternative letter-case form of Bravo from the NATO/ICAO Phonetic Alphabet.
interjection
- 1
Used to express acclaim, especially to a performer.
Bravo, you have done a brilliant job!
verb
- 1
To cheer or applaud, especially by saying bravo!
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Bravo in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense interjection:
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 bravo come from?
Borrowed from Italian bravo. Doublet of brave.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).