commentator
/ˈkɑmənˌteɪtəɹ/noun
commentator is spelled C-O-M-M-E-N-T-A-T-O-R: 11 letters and 4 syllables. It appears 4.7 times per million words in written English, the 11,685th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, commentator means “A person who compiles explanations and critical notes on a text” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of commentator is commentators.
How many letters and syllables are in commentator?
| Letters | 11: C-O-M-M-E-N-T-A-T-O-R |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 4.7 times per million words; the 11,685th 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 commentator?
Commentator appears 4.7 times per million words in written English, the 11,685th 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 commentator?
- US /ˈkɑmənˌteɪtəɹ/
- UK /ˈkɒmənˌteɪtə/
Commentator 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). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-commentator.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of commentator
- commentators plural
- commentatour
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does commentator mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
obsoleterareSynonym of historian or chronicler, a person who compiles an annotated history.
- 2
A person who compiles explanations and critical notes on a text.
- 3
A person who compiles explanations of the law, particularly (historical) comparatively innovative European jurists in the 14th century, as opposed to earlier glossators.
- 4
A person who compiles explanations of biblical passages.
- 5
A person who provides an instantaneous description of a public event, particularly a sporting event, for a mass media audience.
He was a commentator for football two years before retiring.
- 6
A person who provides analysis or opinion on current events, especially for a mass media audience.
noun
- 1
Alternative letter-case form of commentator (medieval legal scholar)
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Commentator in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense person who comments:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | commentateur |
| German | Kommentator, Kommentatorin |
| Portuguese | comentarista |
| Spanish | comentador, comentadora, comentarista |
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 commentator come from?
In form, from Middle English commentator, from Latin commentātor (“author, inventor, interpreter, jailer”), from commentātus + -or (“-er: forming agent nouns”), from commentāri (“to ponder, to study, to write upon”), from comminīscor (“to think over, to invent”) + -tārī (“to frequently be ~ed”). In meaning, influenced by comment and commentary. By surface analysis, comment + -ator.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).