extemporaneous
/ɪksˌ-/adjective
extemporaneous is spelled E-X-T-E-M-P-O-R-A-N-E-O-U-S: 14 letters and 6 syllables. It appears about once in every 10 million words in written English, the 93,703rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, extemporaneous means “With inadequate preparation or without advance thought; offhand” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in extemporaneous?
| Letters | 14: E-X-T-E-M-P-O-R-A-N-E-O-U-S |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 6 (from its pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 10 million words; the 93,703rd 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 extemporaneous?
Extemporaneous appears about once in every 10 million words in written English, the 93,703rd 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 extemporaneous?
- UK /ɪksˌ-/
- UK /ɛksˌtɛm.pɜː(ɹ)ˈeɪn.i.əs/
- Canada /əksˌtɛmpɚˈeɪni.əs/
Extemporaneous has 6 syllables (counted from the pronunciation).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-extemporaneous.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of extemporaneous
- more extemporaneous comparative
- most extemporaneous superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does extemporaneous mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
With inadequate preparation or without advance thought; offhand.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Extemporaneous in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense without preparation:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| German | unvorbereitet |
| Portuguese | extemporâneo |
| Spanish | extemporáneo |
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 extemporaneous come from?
From Late Latin extemporāneus, from Latin ex tempore (“impromptu”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).