comprise
/kəmˈpɹaɪz/verb
comprise is spelled C-O-M-P-R-I-S-E: 8 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 4.2 times per million words in written English, the 12,578th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). People search “compose vs comprise” about 2,900 times a month (Google, United States). As a verb, comprise means “To be made up of; to consist of (especially a comprehensive list of parts)” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in comprise?
| Letters | 8: C-O-M-P-R-I-S-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 4.2 times per million words; the 12,578th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Pairs people 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); Bing searches in the United States: the average month from September 2025 to August 2026 (Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, read September 30, 2026).
How common is comprise?
Comprise appears 4.2 times per million words in written English, the 12,578th 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 comprise?
- /kəmˈpɹaɪz/
Comprise 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-comprise.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with comprise
Word pairs people search, with the monthly searches for “a vs b” (G: Google, B: Bing, United States).
Sources: Google and Bing searches (September 2025 to August 2026, through DataForSEO); English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
Forms of comprise
- comprises present, singular, he/she/it
- comprising participle, present
- comprised participle, past
- comprize rare
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does comprise mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To be made up of; to consist of (especially a comprehensive list of parts).
Near-synonyms: subsume, contain, include, embrace, comprehend
- 2
proscribedTo compose; to constitute.
Near-synonym: make up
- 3
To include, contain, or be made up of, defining the minimum elements, whether essential or inessential to define an invention.
(close-ended)
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Comprise in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | contenir, comprendre , être composé de |
| German | bestehen aus , beinhalten |
| Portuguese | consistir, resumir, compreender , compor , conter |
| Spanish | comprender, constar de, consistir de, comprehender (desus.), radicar en, consistir en |
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 comprise come from?
From Middle English comprisen, from Old French compris, past participle of comprendre, from Latin comprehendere, contr. comprendere, past participle comprehensus (“to comprehend”); see comprehend. Compare apprise, reprise, surprise.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).