collaborate
col·lab·or·ate/kəˈlæb.ə.ɹeɪt/verb
collaborate is spelled C-O-L-L-A-B-O-R-A-T-E: 11 letters and 4 syllables (col·lab·or·ate). It appears 3.2 times per million words in written English, the 14,731st most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, collaborate means “To work together with others to achieve a common goal” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in collaborate?
| Letters | 11: C-O-L-L-A-B-O-R-A-T-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4: col·lab·or·ate |
| In writing | 3.2 times per million words; the 14,731st 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 collaborate?
Collaborate appears 3.2 times per million words in written English, the 14,731st 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 collaborate?
- /kəˈlæb.ə.ɹeɪt/
- /kəˈlæb.ɹeɪt/
Collaborate has 4 syllables, split col·lab·or·ate in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-collaborate.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of collaborate
- collaborates present, singular, he/she/it
- collaborating participle, present
- collaborated participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does collaborate mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To work together with others to achieve a common goal.
Let's collaborate on this project, and get it finished faster.
- 2
To voluntarily cooperate treasonably, as with an enemy occupation force in one's country.
If you collaborate with the occupying forces, you will be shot.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Collaborate in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | collaborer |
| German | zusammenarbeiten , kollaborieren, mit dem Feind zusammenarbeiten |
| Portuguese | colaborar |
| Spanish | colaborar, coadyuvar |
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 collaborate come from?
Back-formation from collaborator, from French collaborateur, or else modeled on French collaborer or directly from Late Latin collabōrātus, past participle of collabōrāre. Displaced native Old English efnwyrċan.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).