ego
/ˈiːɡəʊ/noun, verb
ego is spelled E-G-O: 3 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 10 times per million words in written English, the 6,884th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, ego means “The self, especially with a sense of self-importance” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of ego is egos.
How many letters and syllables are in ego?
| Letters | 3: E-G-O |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 10 times per million words; the 6,884th 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 ego?
Ego appears 10 times per million words in written English, the 6,884th 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 ego?
- /ˈiɡo/
- UK /ˈiːɡəʊ/
- /ˈɛɡəʊ/
Ego has 2 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)-Vealhurl-ego.wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Qwertygiy-ego.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with ego?
One word on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as ego from its last stressed vowel (/iɡəʊ/, British pronunciation):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: geo.
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 ego
- egos plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- egoing participle, present
- egoed participle, past
- ego'd participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does ego mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
The self, especially with a sense of self-importance.
- 2
The most central part of the mind, which mediates with one's surroundings.
- 3
A person's self-esteem and opinion of themselves.
- 4
The individual from whose point of view a family tree or pedigree chart is drawn, or the reference point from whom kinship terminology is relative. (Used without the definite article the.)
the cousin of ego on the father's side
verb
- 1
To damage someone's ego.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Ego in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense the self:
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 ego come from?
Borrowed from Latin ego (“I”). Chosen by Freud’s translator as a translation of his use of German Ich as a noun for this concept from the pronoun ich (“I”). Doublet of I and Ich.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).