detector
/dɪˈtɛktə(ɹ)/noun
detector is spelled D-E-T-E-C-T-O-R: 8 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 5.1 times per million words in written English, the 11,015th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, detector means “A device capable of registering a specific substance or physical phenomenon, and that optionally sounds an alarm or triggers a warning” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of detector is detectors.
How many letters and syllables are in detector?
| Letters | 8: D-E-T-E-C-T-O-R |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 5.1 times per million words; the 11,015th 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 detector?
Detector appears 5.1 times per million words in written English, the 11,015th 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 detector?
- UK /dɪˈtɛktə(ɹ)/
Detector 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)-Vininn126-detector.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with detector?
4 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as detector from its last stressed vowel (/ɛktə/, 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 detector
- detectors plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does detector mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A device capable of registering a specific substance or physical phenomenon, and that optionally sounds an alarm or triggers a warning.
Smoke detectors are mandatory in public buildings.
- 2
An indicator showing the depth of the water in a boiler.
- 3
A galvanometer, usually portable, for indicating the direction of a current.
- 4
A device measuring radiation or electromagnetic waves.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Detector in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense device capable of registering a specific substance or physical phenomenon:
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 detector come from?
Borrowed from Latin dētēctor. Equals detect + -or (agent noun forming suffix).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).