delicacy
/ˈdɛlɪkəsi/noun
delicacy is spelled D-E-L-I-C-A-C-Y: 8 letters and 4 syllables. It appears 1.5 times per million words in written English, the 22,965th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, delicacy means “The quality of being delicate” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of delicacy is delicacies.
How many letters and syllables are in delicacy?
| Letters | 8: D-E-L-I-C-A-C-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.5 times per million words; the 22,965th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
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 delicacy?
Delicacy appears 1.5 times per million words in written English, the 22,965th 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 delicacy?
- UK /ˈdɛlɪkəsi/
Delicacy has 4 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: En-us-delicacy.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of delicacy
- delicacies plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does delicacy mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
The quality of being delicate.
- 2
Something appealing, usually a pleasing food, especially a choice dish of a certain culture suggesting rarity and refinement.
a Chinese delicacy
- 3
Fineness or elegance of construction or appearance.
- 4
Frailty of health or fitness.
- 5
Refinement in taste or discrimination.
- 6
Tact and propriety; the need for such tact.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Delicacy in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | délicatesse , gourmandise |
| German | Feinheit, Zartheit, Empfindlichkeit, Zerbrechlichkeit , Delikatesse, Leckerbissen |
| Portuguese | delicadeza , iguaria, guloseima , fineza , refinamento |
| Spanish | delicadeza , manjar |
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 delicacy come from?
From Middle English delicacie, from Middle English delicat, from Latin delicatus. Equivalent to delic(ate) + -acy.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).