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PlainSpell

face

/ˈfeɪ̯s/noun, verb, adverb

face is spelled F-A-C-E: 4 letters and one syllable. It appears 282 times per million words in written English, the 338th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, face means “The front part of the head of a human or other animal, featuring the eyes, nose, and mouth, and the surrounding area” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of face is faces.

How many letters and syllables are in face?

Letters4: F-A-C-E
Syllables1
In writing282 times per million words; the 338th most frequent word form
Wrong spellings searchednone measured in search
Rhymes with
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 face?

Face appears 282 times per million words in written English, the 338th 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 face?

  • US /ˈfeɪ̯s/
  • US [ˈfɛ̝ɪ̯s]
  • British /ˈfɛjs/

Face has one syllable.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-face.ogg, En-au-face.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).

What rhymes with face?

The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as face from its last stressed vowel (/eɪs/):

Spelled with the same letters in another order: cafe.

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 face

  • faces plural, present, singular, he/she/it
  • facing participle, present
  • faced participle, past

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

What does face mean?

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

noun

  1. 1

    The front part of the head of a human or other animal, featuring the eyes, nose, and mouth, and the surrounding area.

    That girl has a pretty face.

  2. 2

    informalslangOne's facial expression.

    Why the sad face?

  3. 3

    informalslangA distorted facial expression; an expression of displeasure, insult, etc.

    Children! Stop making faces at each other!

  4. 4

    informalslangThe amount expressed on a bill, note, bond, etc., without any interest or discount; face value.

  5. 5

    informalslangThe mouth.

    Shut your face!

  6. 6

    informalslangMakeup; one's complete facial cosmetic application.

    I'll be out in a sec. Just let me put on my face.

  7. 7

    Public image; outward appearance.

    Our chairman is the face of this company.

  8. 8

    Good reputation; standing, in the eyes of others; dignity; prestige.

    lose face

verb

  1. 1

    To position oneself or itself so as to have one's face closest to (something).

    Face the sun.

  2. 2

    To have its front closest to, or in the direction of (something else).

    Turn the chair so it faces the table.

  3. 3

    To cause (something) to turn or present a face or front, as in a particular direction.

  4. 4

    To improve the display of stock by ensuring items aren't upside down or back to front and are pulled forwards.

    I've put out the stock and broken down the boxes, it's just facing left to do.

  5. 5

    To be presented or confronted with; to have in prospect.

    We are facing an uncertain future.

  6. 6

    To deal with (a difficult situation or person); to accept (facts, reality, etc.) even when undesirable.

    I'm going to have to face this sooner or later.

  7. 7

    To have the front in a certain direction.

    The seats in the carriage faced backwards.

  8. 8

    To have as an opponent.

    Real Madrid face Juventus in the quarter-finals.

adverb

  1. 1

    slangIntensely.

    He's tripping face.

phrase

as FACE
  1. 1

    A mnemonic phrase to help remember the order of the four spaces of a musical treble clef in order from the bottom to the top.

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

Face in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese

LanguageWords
Frenchvisage, figure, face (anatomy: front part of head), physionomie (facial expression), gueule (slang: the mouth), faire face à (position oneself towards)
GermanGesicht (anatomy: front part of head), Gesichtsausdruck (facial expression), sich ausrichten (position oneself towards), Ansehen (public image – see also image, reputation), gegenüber sein, gegenüberliegen (have its front closest to)
Portuguesecara, face, rosto (anatomy: front part of head), matraca (slang: the mouth), encarar (position oneself towards), enfrentar (deal with, confront)
Spanishcara, faz, rostro, jeta, haz, facha (anatomy: front part of head)

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 face come from?

From Middle English face, from Old French face, from Late Latin facia, from Latin faciēs (“form, appearance”). Doublet of facies.

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

What to look up after face