contact
/ˈkɑntækt/noun, verb
contact is spelled C-O-N-T-A-C-T: 7 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 98 times per million words in written English, the 1,112th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, contact means “The act of touching physically; being in close association” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of contact is contacts.
How many letters and syllables are in contact?
| Letters | 7: C-O-N-T-A-C-T |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 98 times per million words; the 1,112th 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 contact?
Contact appears 98 times per million words in written English, the 1,112th 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 contact?
- US /ˈkɑntækt/
- UK /ˈkɒntækt/
As a verb (“To touch; to come into physical contact with”): /ˈkɑntækt/, /kənˈtækt/, /ˈkɒntækt/.
Contact 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-contact.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of contact
- contacts plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- contacting participle, present
- contacted participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does contact mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
The act of touching physically; being in close association.
- 2
The establishment of communication (with).
I haven't been in contact with her for years.
- 3
The situation of being within sight of something; visual contact.
- 4
A nodule designed to connect a device with something else.
Touch the contact to ground and read the number again.
- 5
Someone who can be contacted, or with whom one is in communication.
Who is the company's contact for sales queries?
- 6
A means of communication with a person, especially in the form of a telephone number.
- 7
informalA contact lens.
- 8
A device designed for repetitive connections.
verb
- 1
To touch; to come into physical contact with.
The side of the car contacted the pedestrian.
- 2
To establish communication with (something or someone).
I am trying to contact my sister.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Contact in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | contact, toucher , lentille , contacter |
| German | Kontakt, Berührung , Kontaktlinse , kontaktieren , Verbindung , berühren |
| Portuguese | contato, contacto , lente de contato, lente de contacto , tocar, tanger |
| Spanish | contacto , contactar, entrar en contacto con |
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 contact come from?
From Latin contactus, from contingō (“to touch on all sides”), from tangō (“to touch”). Used in English since the 17th century.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).