dismiss
dis·miss/dɪzˈmɪs/verb
dismiss is spelled D-I-S-M-I-S-S: 7 letters and 2 syllables (dis·miss). It appears 7.1 times per million words in written English, the 8,918th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, dismiss means “To discharge; to end the employment or service of” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in dismiss?
| Letters | 7: D-I-S-M-I-S-S |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: dis·miss |
| In writing | 7.1 times per million words; the 8,918th 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 dismiss?
Dismiss appears 7.1 times per million words in written English, the 8,918th 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 dismiss?
- /dɪsˈmɪs/
- UK /dɪzˈmɪs/
Dismiss has 2 syllables, split dis·miss in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-dismiss.ogg, En-au-dismiss.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of dismiss
- dismisses present, singular, he/she/it
- dismissing participle, present
- dismissed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does dismiss mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To discharge; to end the employment or service of.
The company dismissed me after less than a year.
- 2
To order to leave.
The soldiers were dismissed after the parade.
- 3
To dispel; to rid one’s mind of.
He dismissed all thoughts of acting again.
- 4
To reject; to refuse to accept.
The court dismissed the case.
- 5
To invalidate; to treat as unworthy of serious consideration.
By telling the victim to "get over it", the listener dismissed the victim's feelings.
- 6
To send or put away, to discard with disregard, contempt or disdain. (sometimes followed by as).
She dismissed him with a wave of the hand.
- 7
To get a batsman out.
He was dismissed for 99 runs.
- 8
To give someone a red card; to send off.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Dismiss in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | renvoyer, limoger, licencier, démettre , rompez |
| German | entlassen, kündigen , wegtreten lassen , aufgeben, fahren lassen |
| Portuguese | demitir, dispensar , descartar , rejeitar |
| Spanish | despedir, echar, cesantear , dejar salir, romper filas, terminar |
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 dismiss come from?
Middle English, from Latin dimissus (“sent away, dismissed, banished”), perfect passive participle of dīmittō (“send away, dismiss”), from dis- + mittere (“to send”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).