curdle
/ˈkɝ.dəl/verb
curdle is spelled C-U-R-D-L-E: 6 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 10 million words in written English, the 92,628th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, curdle means “To form curds so that it no longer flows smoothly; to cause to form such curds. (usually said of milk)” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in curdle?
| Letters | 6: C-U-R-D-L-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 10 million words; the 92,628th 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 curdle?
Curdle appears about once in every 10 million words in written English, the 92,628th 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 curdle?
- UK /ˈkɜː.dəl/
- US /ˈkɝ.dəl/
Curdle has 2 syllables (counted from the pronunciation).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-curdle.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with curdle?
No other word on PlainSpell ends in the same sounds as curdle (/ɜɹdəl/).
Spelled with the same letters in another order: curled.
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 curdle
- curdles present, singular, he/she/it
- curdling participle, present
- curdled participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does curdle mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To form curds so that it no longer flows smoothly; to cause to form such curds. (usually said of milk)
Too much lemon will curdle the milk in your tea.
- 2
To clot or coagulate; to cause to congeal, such as through cold. (metaphorically of blood)
- 3
To cause a liquid to spoil and form clumps so that it no longer flows smoothly.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Curdle in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | cailler , coaguler |
| Portuguese | coalhar , coagular |
| Spanish | cuajar , coagular |
| German | gerinnen |
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 curdle come from?
Metathesis of earlier dialectal cruddle, crudle, equivalent to curd + -le (frequentative suffix).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).