imperceptible
adjective, noun
imperceptible is spelled I-M-P-E-R-C-E-P-T-I-B-L-E: 13 letters and 5 syllables. It appears about once in every 3 million words in written English, the 53,573rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, imperceptible means “Not perceptible, not detectable, too small in magnitude to be observed” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in imperceptible?
| Letters | 13: I-M-P-E-R-C-E-P-T-I-B-L-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 5 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 3 million words; the 53,573rd 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 imperceptible?
Imperceptible appears about once in every 3 million words in written English, the 53,573rd 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 imperceptible?
- US
Imperceptible has 5 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)-Vininn126-imperceptible.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of imperceptible
- more imperceptible comparative
- most imperceptible superlative
- imperceptibles plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does imperceptible mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Not perceptible, not detectable, too small in magnitude to be observed.
We all missed the imperceptible shake of his head as he tried to warn us without being seen.
- 2
Beyond the purview of man; too great and all-encompassing to be perceived.
noun
- 1
Something that is imperceptible.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Imperceptible in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense not perceptible:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | imperceptible, inapercevable |
| German | unmerklich |
| Portuguese | impercetível, imperceptível |
| Spanish | imperceptible |
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 imperceptible come from?
Inherited from Middle English imperceptible, from Middle French imperceptible and its etymon Medieval Latin imperceptibilis. By surface analysis, im- + perceptible.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).