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PlainSpell

exile

ex·ile/ˈɛɡˌzaɪl/noun, verb

exile is spelled E-X-I-L-E: 5 letters and 2 syllables (ex·ile). It appears 6.9 times per million words in written English, the 9,045th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, exile means “The state of being banished from one's home or country” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of exile is exiles.

How many letters and syllables are in exile?

Letters5: E-X-I-L-E
Syllables2: ex·ile
In writing6.9 times per million words; the 9,045th most frequent word form
Wrong spellings searchednone measured in search
Same letters

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); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.

How common is exile?

Exile appears 6.9 times per million words in written English, the 9,045th 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 exile?

  • US /ˈɛɡˌzaɪl/
  • US /ˈɛkˌsaɪl/
  • /ɪɡˈzaɪl/

Exile has 2 syllables, split ex·ile in writing.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Wodencafe-exile.wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-exile.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).

What rhymes with exile?

No other word on PlainSpell ends in the same sounds as exile (/ɛɡzaɪl/).

Spelled with the same letters in another order: lexie.

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 exile

  • exiles plural, present, singular, he/she/it
  • exiling participle, present
  • exiled participle, past

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

What does exile mean?

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

noun

  1. 1

    The state of being banished from one's home or country.

    He lived in exile.

  2. 2

    Someone who is banished from their home or country.

    She lived as an exile, and did her best to make the most out of such life.

verb

  1. 1

    To send (someone or something) into exile.

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

Exile in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese

LanguageWords
Frenchexil (the state of being banished from one's home or…), exilé (someone who is banished from one's home or…), exiler (to send into exile)
GermanExil, Verbannung (the state of being banished from one's home or…), Exilant, Exilantin, Verbannter (someone who is banished from one's home or…), ins Exil schicken (to send into exile)
Portugueseexílio, desterro (the state of being banished from one's home or…), exilado, degredado (someone who is banished from one's home or…), exilar, desterrar (to send into exile)
Spanishexilio, destierro (the state of being banished from one's home or…), exiliado, desterrado (someone who is banished from one's home or…), exiliar, desterrar (to send into exile)

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 exile come from?

From Middle English exil, borrowed from Old French essil, exil, from Latin exsilium, exilium (“state of exile”), derived from exsul, exul (“exiled person”).

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

What to look up after exile