defenseless
/dɪˈfɛnsləs/adjective
defenseless is spelled D-E-F-E-N-S-E-L-E-S-S: 11 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 1.1 times per million words in written English, the 27,150th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, defenseless means “Lacking any form of defense; vulnerable; open to attack” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in defenseless?
| Letters | 11: D-E-F-E-N-S-E-L-E-S-S |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.1 times per million words; the 27,150th 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 and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; 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 defenseless?
Defenseless appears 1.1 times per million words in written English, the 27,150th 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 defenseless?
- UK /dɪˈfɛnsləs/
Defenseless 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)-Flame,_not_lame-defenseless.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with defenseless?
One word on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as defenseless from its last stressed vowel (/ɛnsləs/, British pronunciation):
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 defenseless
- more defenseless comparative
- most defenseless superlative
- defenceless
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does defenseless mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Lacking any form of defense; vulnerable; open to attack.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Defenseless in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense lacking any form of defense; vulnerable; open to attack:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | sans défense |
| German | schutzlos, wehrlos |
| Portuguese | indefeso, indefenso |
| Spanish | indefenso, desamparado |
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 defenseless come from?
From defense + -less.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).