difficile
dif·fi·cile/ˈdɪ.fə.səl/obsolete
difficile is spelled D-I-F-F-I-C-I-L-E: 9 letters and 3 syllables (dif·fi·cile). It appears about once in every 4 million words in written English, the 58,714th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, difficile means “Hard to work with; stubborn” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in difficile?
| Letters | 9: D-I-F-F-I-C-I-L-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3: dif·fi·cile |
| In writing | about once in every 4 million words; the 58,714th 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 difficile?
Difficile appears about once in every 4 million words in written English, the 58,714th 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 difficile?
- UK /ˈdɪ.fɪ.saɪl/
- US /ˈdɪ.fə.səl/
Difficile has 3 syllables, split dif·fi·cile in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Forms of difficile
- more difficile comparative
- most difficile superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does difficile mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
obsoleteHard to work with; stubborn.
- 2
obsoleteDifficult.
[…] forasmuch as he was to judge of an internall beauty, of a difficile knowledge, and abstruse discovery.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Difficile in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense hard to work with, stubborn:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| Portuguese | difícil |
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 difficile come from?
From late Old French difficile, from Latin difficilis, from dis- + facilis (“easy”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).