congress
/ˈkɑŋɡɹəs/noun, verb
congress is spelled C-O-N-G-R-E-S-S: 8 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 79 times per million words in written English, the 1,338th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, congress means “A formal gathering or assembly of persons; a conference held to discuss or decide on a specific question” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of congress is congresses.
How many letters and syllables are in congress?
| Letters | 8: C-O-N-G-R-E-S-S |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 79 times per million words; the 1,338th 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 congress?
Congress appears 79 times per million words in written English, the 1,338th 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 congress?
- US /ˈkɑŋɡɹəs/
- US /-ɹɛs/
- UK /ˈkɒŋˌɡɹɛs/
As a verb (“To assemble together”): /kənˈɡɹɛs/, /kəŋˈɡɹɛs/.
Congress 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-congress.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of congress
- congresses plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- congressing participle, present
- congressed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does congress mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A formal gathering or assembly of persons; a conference held to discuss or decide on a specific question.
- 2
A legislative body of a state, originally the bicameral legislature of the United States of America.
- 3
An association, especially one consisting of other associations or representatives of interest groups.
Near-synonyms: federation, confederation
- 4
datedCoitus: sexual intercourse.
- 5
archaicA coming together of two or more people; a meeting.
After some little repast, he went to see Democritus […]. The multitude stood gazing round about to see the congress.
- 6
rareA group of baboons.
verb
- 1
To assemble together.
- 2
To meet in a congress.
noun
- 1
USA two-year session of the Congress, commencing after a Federal election and ending before the next one.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Congress in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
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 congress come from?
From Latin congress(um), the past participle of congredior (“to go, come together”), itself from con- + gradior (“to go, step”). The verb is from the noun. Compare typologically coven, convent, convention, omitting several steps, from con- + veniō, Russian сход (sxod), схо́дка (sxódka), akin to сходи́ться (sxodítʹsja), ходи́ть (xodítʹ). Also compare Czech sjezd, Russian съезд (sʺjezd), akin to съезжа́ться (sʺjezžátʹsja), е́здить (jézditʹ). Also compare conference.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).