descriptor
de·scrip·tor/dɪˈskɹɪp.təɹ/noun
descriptor is spelled D-E-S-C-R-I-P-T-O-R: 10 letters and 3 syllables (de·scrip·tor). It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 36,565th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, descriptor means “A name associated with certain data or documents in an information storage and retrieval system; an index term” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of descriptor is descriptors.
How many letters and syllables are in descriptor?
| Letters | 10: D-E-S-C-R-I-P-T-O-R |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3: de·scrip·tor |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 36,565th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
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).
How common is descriptor?
Descriptor appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 36,565th 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 descriptor?
- UK /dɪˈskɹɪp.tə/
- US /dɪˈskɹɪp.təɹ/
- /dəˈskɹəp.tə/
Descriptor has 3 syllables, split de·scrip·tor in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-descriptor.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of descriptor
- descriptors plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does descriptor mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A name associated with certain data or documents in an information storage and retrieval system; an index term.
- 2
A word or expression used to describe or identify something.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Descriptor in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| Portuguese | descritor |
| Spanish | descriptor |
| German | Deskriptor |
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 descriptor come from?
Learned borrowing from Late Latin dēscrīptōris. Compare describe.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).