eloquent
/ˈɛl.əˌkwənt/adjective
eloquent is spelled E-L-O-Q-U-E-N-T: 8 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 1.6 times per million words in written English, the 22,073rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, eloquent means “Fluently persuasive and articulate” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in eloquent?
| Letters | 8: E-L-O-Q-U-E-N-T |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.6 times per million words; the 22,073rd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
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).
How common is eloquent?
Eloquent appears 1.6 times per million words in written English, the 22,073rd 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 eloquent?
- UK /ˈɛl.əˌkwənt/
Eloquent has 3 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)-I_learned_some_phrases-eloquent.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of eloquent
- more eloquent comparative
- most eloquent superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does eloquent mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Fluently persuasive and articulate.
an eloquent writer
- 2
Effective in expressing meaning by speech.
an eloquent article
- 3
Relating to areas in the brain that serve an identifiable neurological function, in which injury leads to focal deficits or disability.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Eloquent in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense fluently persuasive and articulate:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | éloquent |
| German | redegewandt, eloquent, wortgewandt |
| Portuguese | eloquente |
| Spanish | elocuente |
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 eloquent come from?
From Old French eloquent, from Latin eloquens (“speaking, having the faculty of speech, eloquent”), present participle of eloquor (“to speak out”), from e (“out”) + loquor (“to speak”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).