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PlainSpell

firm

/fɜɹm/noun, adjective, verb

firm is spelled F-I-R-M: 4 letters and one syllable. It appears 62 times per million words in written English, the 1,696th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, firm means “A business partnership; the name under which it trades” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of firm is firms.

How many letters and syllables are in firm?

Letters4: F-I-R-M
Syllables1 (from its American pronunciation)
In writing62 times per million words; the 1,696th 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 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 firm?

Firm appears 62 times per million words in written English, the 1,696th 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 firm?

  • UK /fɜːm/
  • US /fɜɹm/
  • US [fɚm]

Firm has one syllable (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: En-uk-firm.ogg, EN-AU_ck1_firm.ogg, En-us-firm.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).

What rhymes with firm?

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

Spelled with the same letters in another order: frim.

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 firm

  • firms plural, present, singular, he/she/it
  • firmer comparative
  • firmest superlative
  • more firm comparative
  • most firm superlative
  • firming participle, present
  • firmed participle, past

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

What does firm mean?

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

noun

  1. 1

    UKA business partnership; the name under which it trades.

  2. 2

    A business enterprise, however organized.

  3. 3

    slangA criminal gang, especially based around football hooliganism.

adjective

  1. 1

    Steadfast, secure, solid (in position)

    It's good to have a firm grip when shaking hands.

  2. 2

    Fixed (in opinion).

    a firm believer; a firm friend; a firm adherent

  3. 3

    Insistent upon something, not accepting dissent.

    He wanted to stay overnight, but I was firm with him and said he had to leave today.

  4. 4

    Durable, rigid (material state).

    firm flesh; firm muscles, firm wood; firm land (i.e. not soft and marshy)

  5. 5

    Mentally resistant to hurt or stress.

  6. 6

    Not frivolous or fallacious; trustworthy; solid; dependable.

verb

  1. 1

    To make firm or strong; fix securely.

  2. 2

    To make compact or resistant to pressure; solidify.

  3. 3

    To become firm; stabilise.

  4. 4

    To improve after decline.

  5. 5

    AustraliaTo shorten (of betting odds).

  6. 6

    colloquialTo grit one's teeth and bear; to push through something unpleasant.

    I know you aren't feeling well, but just firm it.

  7. 7

    UKslangTo select (a higher education institution) as one's preferred choice, so as to enrol automatically if one's grades match the conditional offer.

adverb

  1. 1

    archaicfirmly, steadily

    stand firm

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

Firm in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese

LanguageWords
GermanFirma (business partnership), befestigt, fest, fixiert (steadfast, secure (position))
Portuguesefirma (business partnership), firme (steadfast, secure (position)), firmar (to make firm or strong)
Spanishfirma (business partnership), firme (steadfast, secure (position)), afirmar (to make firm or strong), empresa, bufete (business enterprise, however organized), ejecutorio (fixed (in opinions))
Frenchentreprise (business enterprise, however organized)

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 firm come from?

From Italian firma (“signature”), from firmare (“to sign”), from Latin firmāre (“to make firm, to confirm (by signature)”), from firmus (“firm, stable”). The contemporary sense developed in the 18th century simultaneously with German Firma (“business, name of business”). There are conflicting statements in the literature as to which of the two languages influenced which. Doublet of dharma and dhamma. Other cognates include Russian держать (deržatʹ, “to hold”).

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

What to look up after firm