carborundum
/ˌkɑɹ.bəˈɹʌn.dəm/noun
carborundum is spelled C-A-R-B-O-R-U-N-D-U-M: 11 letters and 4 syllables. It appears about once in every 21 million words in written English, the 138,319th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, carborundum means “Crystals of silicon carbide used as an abrasive” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in carborundum?
| Letters | 11: C-A-R-B-O-R-U-N-D-U-M |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 21 million words; the 138,319th 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 carborundum?
Carborundum appears about once in every 21 million words in written English, the 138,319th 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 carborundum?
- /ˌkɑɹ.bəˈɹʌn.dəm/
Carborundum has 4 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).
What does carborundum mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
Crystals of silicon carbide used as an abrasive.
noun
- 1
Alternative letter-case form of carborundum.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Carborundum in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense crystals of silicon carbide used as an abrasive:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| German | Carborundum, Karborund |
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 carborundum come from?
Blend of carbon + corundum; originally a trade name.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).