copula
cop·u·la/ˈkɑpjələ/noun
copula is spelled C-O-P-U-L-A: 6 letters and 3 syllables (cop·u·la). It appears about once in every 5 million words in written English, the 69,055th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, copula means “A word, usually a verb, used to link the subject of a sentence with a predicate (usually a subject complement or an adverbial), that unites or…” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of copula is copulas or copulae.
How many letters and syllables are in copula?
| Letters | 6: C-O-P-U-L-A |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3: cop·u·la |
| In writing | about once in every 5 million words; the 69,055th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Same letters |
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 copula?
Copula appears about once in every 5 million words in written English, the 69,055th 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 copula?
- UK /ˈkɒpjʊlə/
- UK /ˈkɒpjələ/
- US /ˈkɑpjələ/
Copula has 3 syllables, split cop·u·la in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-copula.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with copula?
No other word on PlainSpell ends in the same sounds as copula (/ɑpjələ/).
Spelled with the same letters in another order: cupola, coupla.
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 copula
- copulas plural
- copulae plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does copula mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A word, usually a verb, used to link the subject of a sentence with a predicate (usually a subject complement or an adverbial), that unites or associates the subject with the predicate.
- 2
The bond or relationship by which two things are combined into a unity.
- 3
A function that represents the association between two or more variables, independent of the individual marginal distributions of the variables.
- 4
A device that connects two or more keyboards of an organ.
- 5
The act of copulation; mating.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Copula in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense grammar: linking kind of word:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | copule |
| German | Kopula, Kopulaverb |
| Portuguese | cópula, verbo de ligação |
| Spanish | cópula |
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 copula come from?
Borrowed from Latin cōpula (“connection, linking of words”), from co- (“together”) + apere (“fasten”). Doublet of couple.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).