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PlainSpell

enlist

/ɛnˈlɪst/verb, noun

enlist is spelled E-N-L-I-S-T: 6 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 2.3 times per million words in written English, the 17,813th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, enlist means “To enter on a list; to enroll; to register” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).

How many letters and syllables are in enlist?

Letters6: E-N-L-I-S-T
Syllables2 (from its American pronunciation)
In writing2.3 times per million words; the 17,813th most frequent word form
Wrong spellings searchednone 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 enlist?

Enlist appears 2.3 times per million words in written English, the 17,813th 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 enlist?

  • /ɛnˈlɪst/
  • /ɪnˈlɪst/

Enlist 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-enlist.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).

What rhymes with enlist?

No other word on PlainSpell ends in the same sounds as enlist.

Spelled with the same letters in another order: listen, silent, tinsel.

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 enlist

  • enlists present, singular, he/she/it, plural
  • enlisting participle, present
  • enlisted participle, past

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What does enlist mean?

The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).

verb

  1. 1

    To enter on a list; to enroll; to register.

  2. 2

    To voluntarily join a cause or organization, especially military service.

    The army wants potential soldiers to enlist.

  3. 3

    To recruit the aid or membership of others.

    We enlisted fifty new members.

  4. 4

    To secure; to obtain.

    They enlisted the government's support.

noun

  1. 1

    One who is enlisted, usually in a military service.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

Enlist in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese

LanguageWords
Frenchs'inscrire (to enter on a list, enroll, register), rejoindre (to join a cause or organization), recruter (to recruit others)
Germaneintragen (to enter on a list, enroll, register), eintreten (to join a cause or organization), anwerben, rekrutieren (to recruit others)
Portuguesealistar (to enter on a list, enroll, register), recrutar (to recruit others)
Spanishalistar, enlistar (to enter on a list, enroll, register), alistarse, sentar plaza, asentar plaza (to join a cause or organization)

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 enlist come from?

From en- + list.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What to look up after enlist