honeymoon
/ˈhʌn.iˌmuːn/noun, verb
honeymoon is spelled H-O-N-E-Y-M-O-O-N: 9 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 4.8 times per million words in written English, the 11,541st most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, honeymoon means “The period of time immediately following a marriage” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of honeymoon is honeymoons.
How many letters and syllables are in honeymoon?
| Letters | 9: H-O-N-E-Y-M-O-O-N |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 4.8 times per million words; the 11,541st 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 honeymoon?
Honeymoon appears 4.8 times per million words in written English, the 11,541st 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 honeymoon?
- /ˈhʌn.iˌmuːn/
Honeymoon 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: En-us-honeymoon.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with honeymoon
Also written: honey moon (one word or two).
Sources: English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
Forms of honeymoon
- honeymoons plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- honeymooning participle, present
- honeymooned participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does honeymoon mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
The period of time immediately following a marriage.
- 2
A trip taken by a newly married couple during this period.
We went to Greece for our honeymoon.
- 3
A period of goodwill at the beginning of a new term or relationship (e.g. towards a newly elected politician or in respect of a new business arrangement).
Now that the honeymoon is over, it’s time for us to get down to the business at hand.
verb
- 1
To have a honeymoon (a trip taken by a couple after wedding).
My parents honeymooned at Niagara falls.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Honeymoon in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | lune de miel , voyage de noces |
| German | Flitterwochen , Hochzeitsreise , flittern |
| Portuguese | lua de mel |
| Spanish | luna de miel, luna melera, luna mielera , viaje de novios |
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 honeymoon come from?
From earlier hony moone, originally denoting the period of time following a wedding, equivalent to honey + moon. The original reference was to affection waning like the moon, but later the sense became "the first month, or moon after marriage", which tends to be the sweetest. Compare Middle Low German suckermânt (“honeymoon”, literally “sugar-month”), German Low German Hönnigweken (“honeymoon”, literally “honey-weeks”). The German Honigmond (literally “honey-moon”) is a calque of French lune de miel, itself a calque of the English term.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).