ferment
/fɚˈmɛnt/verb, noun
ferment is spelled F-E-R-M-E-N-T: 7 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 34,912th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). People search “ferment vs foment” about 70 times a month (Google, United States). As a verb, ferment means “To react, using fermentation; especially to produce alcohol by aging or by allowing yeast to act on sugars; to brew” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in ferment?
| Letters | 7: F-E-R-M-E-N-T |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 1 million words; the 34,912th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Pairs people 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); Bing searches in the United States: the average month from September 2025 to August 2026 (Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, read September 30, 2026); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is ferment?
Ferment appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 34,912th 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 ferment?
- UK /fəˈmɛnt/
- US /fɚˈmɛnt/
As a noun (“Something, such as a yeast or barm, that causes fermentation”): /ˈfɜː.mɛnt/, /ˈfɚ.mɛnt/.
Ferment 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-ferment.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with ferment
Word pairs people search, with the monthly searches for “a vs b” (G: Google, B: Bing, United States).
Sources: Google and Bing searches (September 2025 to August 2026, through DataForSEO); English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
What rhymes with ferment?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as ferment from its last stressed vowel (/ɛnt/):
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 ferment
- ferments present, singular, he/she/it, plural
- fermenting participle, present
- fermented participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does ferment mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To react, using fermentation; especially to produce alcohol by aging or by allowing yeast to act on sugars; to brew.
- 2
To stir up, agitate, cause unrest or excitement in.
noun
- 1
Something, such as a yeast or barm, that causes fermentation.
- 2
A state of agitation or of turbulent change.
14 November, 1770, Junius, letter to the Right Honourable Lord Mansfield The nation is in a ferment.
- 3
A gentle internal motion of the constituent parts of a fluid; fermentation.
- 4
A catalyst.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Ferment in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | fermenter , ferment |
| German | gären , Gärmittel , stören, anstacheln |
| Portuguese | fermentar , fermento |
| Spanish | fermentar , fermento |
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 ferment come from?
From Middle English ferment, from Middle French ferment, from Latin fermentāre (“to leaven, ferment”), from fermentum (“substance causing fermentation”), possibly from contraction of *fervimentum, from fervēre. See also fervent.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).