fluctuation
/flʌkt͡ʃuːˈeɪʃən/noun
fluctuation is spelled F-L-U-C-T-U-A-T-I-O-N: 11 letters and 4 syllables. It appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 33,236th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, fluctuation means “A motion like that of waves; a moving in this and that direction; an irregular rising and falling” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of fluctuation is fluctuations.
How many letters and syllables are in fluctuation?
| Letters | 11: F-L-U-C-T-U-A-T-I-O-N |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 1 million words; the 33,236th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
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).
How common is fluctuation?
Fluctuation appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 33,236th 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 fluctuation?
- /flʌkt͡ʃuːˈeɪʃən/
Fluctuation has 4 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)-Vininn126-fluctuation.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of fluctuation
- fluctuations plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does fluctuation mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A motion like that of waves; a moving in this and that direction; an irregular rising and falling.
the fluctuations of the sea
- 2
A wavering; unsteadiness.
fluctuations of opinion
- 3
In medicine, a wave-like motion or undulation of a fluid in a natural or abnormal cavity (e.g. pus in an abscess), which is felt during palpation or percussion.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Fluctuation in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | fluctuation |
| German | Schwankung , Fluktuation |
| Portuguese | flutuação, ondulação |
| Spanish | fluctuación |
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 fluctuation come from?
Borrowed from Latin fluctuatiōnem, accusative singular of fluctuatiō, from fluctuō, from fluctus. Morphologically fluctuate + -ion.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).