demi
noun, adjective
demi is spelled D-E-M-I: 4 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 2.3 times per million words in written English, the 17,813th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data, counting Demi, the name). As a noun, demi means “Alternative spelling of demy” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of demi is demis.
How many letters and syllables are in demi?
| Letters | 4: D-E-M-I |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 2.3 times per million words; the 17,813th 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 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 demi?
Demi appears 2.3 times per million words in written English, the 17,813th most frequent word form in the list. The list counts every capitalisation together, so this includes Demi, the name.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce demi?
- Australia
Demi has 2 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-demi-.wav, En-au-demi.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with demi?
No other word on PlainSpell ends in the same sounds as demi.
Spelled with the same letters in another order: dime, idem.
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 demi
- demis plural
- more demi comparative
- most demi superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does demi mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
Alternative spelling of demy.
- 2
slangA fifty pence piece.
- 3
A bottle of wine containing 0.375 liters of fluid, half the volume of a standard bottle; a split.
- 4
A small glass used chiefly in France (especially for beer) holding 250 milliliters.
- 5
A member of the demimonde; a woman maintained by a wealthy man.
adjective
- 1
informalDemisexual.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Demi in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense half – see also half-, semi-, hemi-:
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 demi come from?
From Middle English demi, from Anglo-Norman demi, from Latin dimidius. Literally, “half”.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).