cetacean
/sɪˈteɪʃən/adjective, noun
cetacean is spelled C-E-T-A-C-E-A-N: 8 letters and 3 syllables. It appears about once in every 6 million words in written English, the 75,877th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, cetacean means “Pertaining to the zoologic infraorder Cetacea, or associated with species falling under that taxonomic hierarchy” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in cetacean?
| Letters | 8: C-E-T-A-C-E-A-N |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 6 million words; the 75,877th 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 cetacean?
Cetacean appears about once in every 6 million words in written English, the 75,877th 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 cetacean?
- /sɪˈteɪʃən/
Cetacean has 3 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-cetacean.wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Wodencafe-cetacean.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of cetacean
- more cetacean comparative
- most cetacean superlative
- cetaceans plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does cetacean mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Pertaining to the zoologic infraorder Cetacea, or associated with species falling under that taxonomic hierarchy.
The poached blubber was definitely cetacean in origin, but the particular species could not be identified.
- 2
Resembling or relating to large aquatic mammals.
The obese woman, ungainly on land, moved with a kind of cetacean grace in the water.
noun
- 1
A marine mammal belonging to the infraorder Cetacea, including dolphins, porpoises, and whales, characterized by a streamlined body, one or two blowholes, tail flukes, and fin-like forelimbs without hind limbs.
The tour promised spiritual experiences with humpback whales and other cetaceans, but all we saw were seagulls and a dead sea otter.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Cetacean in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense an animal belonging to the infraorder Cetacea:
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 cetacean come from?
From translingual Cetacea, from Latin cētus (“whale”), + -an.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).