contumacious
con·tu·ma·cious/ˌkɑːn.tʊˈmeɪ.ʃəs/adjective
contumacious is spelled C-O-N-T-U-M-A-C-I-O-U-S: 12 letters and 4 syllables (con·tu·ma·cious). It appears about once in every 65 million words in written English, the 252,559th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, contumacious means “Contemptuous of authority; willfully disobedient; rebellious” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in contumacious?
| Letters | 12: C-O-N-T-U-M-A-C-I-O-U-S |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4: con·tu·ma·cious |
| In writing | about once in every 65 million words; the 252,559th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; 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 contumacious?
Contumacious appears about once in every 65 million words in written English, the 252,559th 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 contumacious?
- UK /ˌkɒn.tjʊˈmeɪ.ʃəs/
- US /ˌkɑːn.tʊˈmeɪ.ʃəs/
- US /ˌkɑːn.tjəˈmeɪ.ʃəs/
Contumacious has 4 syllables, split con·tu·ma·cious in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-contumacious.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with contumacious?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as contumacious from its last stressed vowel (/eɪʃəs/):
- tenacious
- audacious
- herbaceous
- ostentatious
- efficacious
- rapacious
- sebaceous
- pugnacious
- loquacious
- perspicacious
- argillaceous
- pertinacious
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 contumacious
- more contumacious comparative
- most contumacious superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does contumacious mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Contemptuous of authority; willfully disobedient; rebellious.
- 2
Willfully disobedient to the summons or orders of a court.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Contumacious in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| German | ungehorsam |
| Spanish | insubordinado , contumaz |
| French | contumace |
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 contumacious come from?
From Latin contumāx (“stubborn, obstinate”) + -ious. By surface analysis, contum(ax) + -acious.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).