compile
/kəmˈpaɪl/verb, noun
compile is spelled C-O-M-P-I-L-E: 7 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 2.4 times per million words in written English, the 17,587th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, compile means “To make by gathering pieces from various sources” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in compile?
| Letters | 7: C-O-M-P-I-L-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 2.4 times per million words; the 17,587th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with | |
| Same letters |
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); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is compile?
Compile appears 2.4 times per million words in written English, the 17,587th 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 compile?
- US /kəmˈpaɪl/
- Australia /kəmˈpɑɪl/
Compile 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: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-compile.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with compile?
11 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as compile from its last stressed vowel (/aɪl/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: polemic.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of compile
- compiles present, singular, he/she/it, plural
- compiling participle, present
- compiled participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does compile mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To make by gathering pieces from various sources.
Samuel Johnson compiled one of the most influential dictionaries of the English language.
- 2
obsoleteTo construct; to build.
- 3
To achieve (a break) by making a sequence of shots.
Steve Davis compiled a 147.
- 4
To use a compiler to process source code and produce executable code.
After I compile this program I’ll run it and see if it works.
- 5
To be successfully processed by a compiler into executable code.
There must be an error in my source code because it won’t compile.
- 6
obsoleteTo contain or comprise.
- 7
obsoleteTo write; to compose.
noun
- 1
An act of compiling code.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
How do you abbreviate compile?
Wiktionary records one abbreviation of compile: comp.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Compile in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | compiler |
| German | zusammenstellen , kompilieren |
| Portuguese | compilar |
| Spanish | copilar, recopilar, compilar |
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 compile come from?
From Middle English compilen, from Old French compiler, from Latin compīlō (“to plunder”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).