continue
/kənˈtɪn.juː/verb, noun
continue is spelled C-O-N-T-I-N-U-E: 8 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 120 times per million words in written English, the 873rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, continue means “To proceed with (doing an activity); to prolong (an activity)” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in continue?
| Letters | 8: C-O-N-T-I-N-U-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 120 times per million words; the 873rd 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 continue?
Continue appears 120 times per million words in written English, the 873rd 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 continue?
- UK /kənˈtɪn.juː/
- /kənˈtɪn.jʉu/
- /kənˈtɪn juː/
Continue has 3 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-continue.wav, En-us-continue.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of continue
- continues present, singular, he/she/it, plural
- continuing participle, present
- continued participle, past, singular, he/she/it, plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does continue mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To proceed with (doing an activity); to prolong (an activity).
Shall I continue speaking, or will you just interrupt me again?
- 2
To make last; to prolong.
Can you account him wise or discreet that would willingly have his health, and yet will do nothing that should procure or continue it?
- 3
To retain (someone or something) in a given state, position, etc.
- 4
To remain in a given place or condition; to remain in connection with; to abide; to stay.
- 5
To resume.
When will the concert continue?
- 6
To adjourn, prorogue, put off.
This meeting has been continued to the thirteenth of July.
- 7
slangTo make a continuation bet.
noun
- 1
An option allowing the player to resume play after game over, when all lives have been lost, while retaining their progress.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
How do you abbreviate continue?
Wiktionary records one abbreviation of continue: cont.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Continue in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | continuer |
| German | fortsetzen, weiterhin etwas tun, etwas weiter tun, weitermachen mit , weitermachen, fortfahren |
| Portuguese | continuar, seguir |
| Spanish | continuar, seguir, proseguir |
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.