harmonic
/hɑɹˈmɑnɪk/adjective, noun
harmonic is spelled H-A-R-M-O-N-I-C: 8 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 2.1 times per million words in written English, the 18,811th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, harmonic means “Pertaining to harmony” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in harmonic?
| Letters | 8: H-A-R-M-O-N-I-C |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 2.1 times per million words; the 18,811th 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 harmonic?
Harmonic appears 2.1 times per million words in written English, the 18,811th 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 harmonic?
- UK /hɑːˈmɒnɪk/
- US /hɑɹˈmɑnɪk/
Harmonic 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-harmonic.wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Wodencafe-harmonic.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with harmonic?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as harmonic from its last stressed vowel (/ɑnɪk/):
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 harmonic
- more harmonic comparative
- most harmonic superlative
- harmonics plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does harmonic mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Pertaining to harmony.
- 2
Pleasant to hear; harmonious; melodious.
- 3
Used to characterize various mathematical entities or relationships supposed to bear some resemblance to musical consonance.
The harmonic polar line of an inflection point of a cubic curve is the component of the polar conic other than the tangent line.
- 4
Recurring periodically.
- 5
Exhibiting or applying constraints on what vowels (e.g. front/back vowels only) may be found near each other and sometimes in the entire word.
- 6
Of or relating to a generation an even number of generations distant from a particular person.
noun
- 1
A component frequency of the signal of a wave that is an integer multiple of the fundamental frequency.
- 2
The place where, on a bowed string instrument, a note in the harmonic series of a particular string can be played without the fundamental present.
- 3
One of a class of functions that enter into the development of the potential of a nearly spherical mass due to its attraction.
- 4
One's child.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Harmonic in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | harmonique , harmonieux, mélodieux, mélodique |
| German | harmonisch |
| Portuguese | harmônico, harmónico , harmonioso |
| Spanish | armónico |
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 harmonic come from?
From Latin harmonicus, from Ancient Greek ἁρμονικός (harmonikós), from ἁρμονία (harmonía, “harmony”). By surface analysis, harmony + -ic. Doublet of armónico.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).