gatekeeper
/ˈɡeɪtˌki.pəɹ/noun
gatekeeper is spelled G-A-T-E-K-E-E-P-E-R: 10 letters and 3 syllables. It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 37,459th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, gatekeeper means “A person who guards or monitors passage through a gate” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of gatekeeper is gatekeepers.
How many letters and syllables are in gatekeeper?
| Letters | 10: G-A-T-E-K-E-E-P-E-R |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 37,459th 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 gatekeeper?
Gatekeeper appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 37,459th 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 gatekeeper?
- UK /ˈɡeɪtˌkiː.pə/
- US /ˈɡeɪtˌki.pəɹ/
Gatekeeper has 3 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-gatekeeper.wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Naomi_Persephone_Amethyst_(NaomiAmethyst)-gatekeeper.wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Wodencafe-gatekeeper.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with gatekeeper
Also written: gate-keeper (one word or two).
Sources: English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
Forms of gatekeeper
- gatekeepers plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does gatekeeper mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A person who guards or monitors passage through a gate.
- 2
A person or group who controls access to something or somebody.
- 3
A common orange and brown butterfly with eyespots, Pyronia tithonus, of the family Nymphalidae.
- 4
In dissociative identity disorder, an aspect of the personality that controls access to the various identities.
- 5
One who gatekeeps.
- 6
A provider of core platform services with specific characteristics (Regulation (EU) 2022/1925 of the European Parliament and of the Council)
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Gatekeeper in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense person who guards or monitors passage through a gate:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | gardien, gardienne |
| German | Torwächter, Torwächterin, Torwächterinnen |
| Portuguese | porteiro, porteira |
| Spanish | portero, portera |
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 gatekeeper come from?
From gate + keeper.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).