east
/iːst/noun, adjective, adverb
east is spelled E-A-S-T: 4 letters and one syllable. It appears 145 times per million words in written English, the 711th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, east means “The direction of the earth's rotation, specifically 90°” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of east is easts.
How many letters and syllables are in east?
| Letters | 4: E-A-S-T |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 145 times per million words; the 711th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| 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 east?
East appears 145 times per million words in written English, the 711th 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 east?
- /iːst/
- British /ɪjst/
East 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-east.ogg, En-uk-east.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with east?
No other word on PlainSpell ends in the same sounds as east.
Spelled with the same letters in another order: seat, eats, sate, seta, tase.
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 east
- easts plural
- further east comparative
- farther east comparative
- furthest east superlative
- farthest east superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does east mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
The direction of the earth's rotation, specifically 90°.
Portsmouth is to the east of Southampton.
- 2
The eastern region or area; the inhabitants thereof.
- 3
In a church: the direction of the altar and chancel; the direction faced by the priest when celebrating ad orientem.
adjective
- 1
Situated or lying in or towards the east; eastward.
- 2
Blowing (as wind) from the east.
- 3
Of or pertaining to the east; eastern.
- 4
From the East; oriental.
- 5
Designating, or situated in, the liturgical east.
the east front of a cathedral
adverb
- 1
Towards the east; eastwards.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
How do you abbreviate east?
Wiktionary records one abbreviation of east: e..
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
East in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | est, orient, levant , à l'est , de l'est , oriental |
| German | Osten, Ost, Oschte, Oschta , oscht |
| Portuguese | este, leste, oriente , ao leste, oriental , do leste |
| Spanish | este, oriente, levante , oriental , hacia el este, al este |
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 east come from?
From Middle English est, from Old English ēast, from Proto-West Germanic *austr, from Proto-Germanic *austrą, from Proto-Germanic *austraz, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂éwsteros (“east”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).