chaplain
/ˈt͡ʃæp.lɪn/noun
chaplain is spelled C-H-A-P-L-A-I-N: 8 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 2.7 times per million words in written English, the 16,455th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, chaplain means “A member of a religious body (who is often, although not always, of the clergy) officially assigned to provide pastoral care at an institution…” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of chaplain is chaplains.
How many letters and syllables are in chaplain?
| Letters | 8: C-H-A-P-L-A-I-N |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 2.7 times per million words; the 16,455th 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 chaplain?
Chaplain appears 2.7 times per million words in written English, the 16,455th 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 chaplain?
- /ˈt͡ʃæp.lɪn/
Chaplain 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-us-chaplain.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of chaplain
- chaplains plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does chaplain mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A member of a religious body (who is often, although not always, of the clergy) officially assigned to provide pastoral care at an institution, group, private chapel, etc.
- 2
A person without religious affiliation who carries out similar duties in a secular context.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
How do you abbreviate chaplain?
Wiktionary records one abbreviation of chaplain: chap..
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Chaplain in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense member of a religious body:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | aumônier, chapelain |
| German | Kaplan, Kaplanin, Seelsorger, Seelsorgerin, Gefängnisseelsorger, Gefängnisseelsorgerin |
| Portuguese | capelão |
| Spanish | capellán |
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 chaplain come from?
From Middle English chapeleyn, from Old French chapelain, from Medieval Latin, Late Latin cappellānus, from cappella. Doublet of capelin. Displaced Old English handprēost.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).