frill
/fɹɪl/noun, verb
frill is spelled F-R-I-L-L: 5 letters and one syllable. It appears about once in every 5 million words in written English, the 65,913th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, frill means “A strip of pleated fabric or paper used as decoration or trim” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of frill is frills.
How many letters and syllables are in frill?
| Letters | 5: F-R-I-L-L |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 5 million words; the 65,913th 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 frill?
Frill appears about once in every 5 million words in written English, the 65,913th 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 frill?
- US /fɹɪl/
Frill 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: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-frill.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with frill?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as frill from its last stressed vowel (/ɪl/):
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 frill
- frills plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- frilling participle, present
- frilled participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does frill mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A strip of pleated fabric or paper used as decoration or trim.
- 2
A substance or material on the edge of something, resembling such a strip of fabric.
- 3
A wrinkled edge to a film.
- 4
Something extraneous or not essential; something purely for show or effect; a luxury.
- 5
The relatively extensive margin seen on the back of the heads of reptiles, with either a bony support or a cartilaginous one.
- 6
Synonym of armilla.
verb
- 1
To make into a frill.
- 2
To become wrinkled.
- 3
To provide or decorate with a frill or frills; to turn back in crimped plaits.
- 4
obsoleteTo shake or shiver as with cold (with reference to a hawk).
- 5
obsoleteTo cry (with reference to a bird of prey).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Frill in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | froufrou, ruche, volant , collerette |
| German | Rüsche, Krause |
| Portuguese | babado, folho |
| Spanish | volante , perifollo |
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 frill come from?
Of uncertain origin.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).