falter
/ˈfɔltəɹ/noun, verb
falter is spelled F-A-L-T-E-R: 6 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 36,176th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, falter means “An unsteadiness” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of falter is falters.
How many letters and syllables are in falter?
| Letters | 6: F-A-L-T-E-R |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 36,176th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
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 falter?
Falter appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 36,176th 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 falter?
- UK /ˈfɒltə/
- UK /ˈfɔːltə/
- US /ˈfɔltəɹ/
Falter 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-falter.wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Wodencafe-falter.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with falter?
5 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as falter from its last stressed vowel (/ɔltəɹ/):
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 falter
- falters plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- faltering participle, present
- faltered participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does falter mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
An unsteadiness.
verb
- 1
To waver or be unsteady; to weaken or trail off.
- 2
To stammer; to utter with hesitation, or in a weak and trembling manner.
- 3
To fail in distinctness or regularity of exercise; said of the mind or of thought.
- 4
To stumble.
- 5
To lose faith or vigor; to doubt or abandon (a cause).
- 6
To hesitate in purpose or action.
- 7
To cleanse or sift, as barley.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Falter in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| German | Wanken , wanken, wackeln, schwächeln, flackern , stolpern |
| French | vaciller |
| Spanish | flaquear, fallar |
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 falter come from?
From Middle English falteren (“to stagger; be unsteady, tremble, quiver; to stammer; be entangled, get caught”), further origin unknown. Probably from a North Germanic source such as Old Norse faltrask (“to hesitate, be puzzled, be encumbered”). May also be a frequentative of fold, although the change from d to t is unusual.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).