elegance
el·e·gance/ˈɛl.ɪ.ɡəns/noun
elegance is spelled E-L-E-G-A-N-C-E: 8 letters and 3 syllables (el·e·gance). It appears 2.6 times per million words in written English, the 16,687th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, elegance means “Grace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of elegance is elegances.
How many letters and syllables are in elegance?
| Letters | 8: E-L-E-G-A-N-C-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3: el·e·gance |
| In writing | 2.6 times per million words; the 16,687th 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 elegance?
Elegance appears 2.6 times per million words in written English, the 16,687th 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 elegance?
- /ˈɛl.ɪ.ɡəns/
Elegance has 3 syllables, split el·e·gance in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-elegance.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of elegance
- elegances plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does elegance mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
Grace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners.
The bride was elegance personified.
- 2
Restraint and grace of style.
The simple dress had a quiet elegance.
- 3
The beauty of an idea characterized by minimalism and intuitiveness while preserving exactness and precision.
The proof of the theorem had a pleasing elegance.
- 4
datedA refinement or luxury.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Elegance in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense grace, refinement, and beauty in movement, appearance, or manners:
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 elegance come from?
From Middle French élégance, from Latin ēlegantia (“exquisiteness; refinement, elegance”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).