dirge
/dɝd͡ʒ/noun, verb
dirge is spelled D-I-R-G-E: 5 letters and one syllable. It appears about once in every 4 million words in written English, the 60,838th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, dirge means “A mournful poem or piece of music composed or performed as a memorial to a deceased person” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of dirge is dirges.
How many letters and syllables are in dirge?
| Letters | 5: D-I-R-G-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 4 million words; the 60,838th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with | |
| 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 dirge?
Dirge appears about once in every 4 million words in written English, the 60,838th 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 dirge?
- UK /dɜːdʒ/
- US /dɝd͡ʒ/
Dirge has one syllable (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-dirge.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with dirge?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as dirge from its last stressed vowel (/ɜɹdʒ/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: ridge.
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 dirge
- dirges plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- dirging participle, present
- dirged participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does dirge mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A mournful poem or piece of music composed or performed as a memorial to a deceased person.
- 2
informalA song or piece of music that is considered too slow, bland or boring.
verb
- 1
To sing dirges
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Dirge in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense mournful poem or piece of music:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | chant funèbre |
| German | Klagelied, Trauersang, Grabsang |
| Portuguese | elegia, nénia, nênia |
| Spanish | canto fúnebre |
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 dirge come from?
From Middle English dirige, from Latin dirige (“steer, direct”), from the beginning of the first antiphon in matins for the dead, Dirige, Domine, deus meus, in conspectu tuo viam meam. Doublet of dirige.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).