format
/ˈfɔːɹ.mæt/noun, verb
format is spelled F-O-R-M-A-T: 6 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 30 times per million words in written English, the 3,161st most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, format means “The layout of a publication or document” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of format is formats.
How many letters and syllables are in format?
| Letters | 6: F-O-R-M-A-T |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 30 times per million words; the 3,161st 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 format?
Format appears 30 times per million words in written English, the 3,161st 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 format?
- UK /ˈfɔː(ɹ).mæt/
- US /ˈfɔːɹ.mæt/
Format 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: En-us-format.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with format?
One word on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as format from its last stressed vowel (/ɔɹmæt/):
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 format
- formats plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- formatting participle, present
- formatted participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does format mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
The layout of a publication or document.
- 2
The form of presentation of something.
- 3
The type of programming that a radio station broadcasts; such as a certain genre of music, news, sports, talk, etc.
The radio station changed the format of its evening program.
- 4
A file type.
verb
- 1
To create or edit the layout of a document.
- 2
Change a document so it will fit onto a different type of page.
- 3
To prepare a mass storage medium for initial use, erasing any existing data in the process.
I lost weeks of work when I inadvertently formatted my hard drive.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
How do you abbreviate format?
Wiktionary records one abbreviation of format: fmt.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Format in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | format , formater |
| German | Format , formatieren , Struktur |
| Portuguese | formato , formatar |
| Spanish | formato , formatear |
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 format come from?
Via French format and German Format, from New Latin liber fōrmātus (“book fashioned”), from fōrmō (“to shape, fashion”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).