custody
/ˈkʌstədiː/noun
custody is spelled C-U-S-T-O-D-Y: 7 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 17 times per million words in written English, the 4,934th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, custody means “The legal right to take care of something or somebody, especially children” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of custody is custodies.
How many letters and syllables are in custody?
| Letters | 7: C-U-S-T-O-D-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 17 times per million words; the 4,934th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Sounds like |
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 custody?
Custody appears 17 times per million words in written English, the 4,934th 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 custody?
- /ˈkʌstədiː/
Custody 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-custody.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with custody
Sounds like: custardy (Wiktionary's homophone list; some hold only in some accents).
Sources: English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
Forms of custody
- custodies plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does custody mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
The legal right to take care of something or somebody, especially children.
The court awarded custody to the child's father.
- 2
Temporary possession or care of somebody else's property.
I couldn't pay the bill and now my passport is in custody of the hotel management.
- 3
The state of being imprisoned or detained, usually pending a trial.
He was mistreated while in police custody.
- 4
An area under the jurisdiction of a custos within the Order of Friars Minor.
The Custody of the Holy Land includes the monasteries of Bethlehem, Nazareth, and Jerusalem.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
How do you abbreviate custody?
Wiktionary records one abbreviation of custody: cust.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Custody in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | garde , détention , garde à vue , custodie |
| German | Sorgerecht, Obhut, Obsorge , Verwahrung, Aufbewahrung , Haft |
| Portuguese | guarda , custódia |
| Spanish | custodia, patria potestad, tutela |
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 custody come from?
Borrowed from Latin custōdia (“a keeping, watch, guard, prison”), from custōs (“a keeper, watchman, guard”). Doublet of custode.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).