importunate
/ɪmˈpɔɹt͡ʃənət/adjective, noun, verb
importunate is spelled I-M-P-O-R-T-U-N-A-T-E: 11 letters. It appears about once in every 25 million words in written English, the 152,206th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, importunate means “Persistent or pressing, often annoyingly so” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in importunate?
| Letters | 11: I-M-P-O-R-T-U-N-A-T-E |
|---|---|
| In writing | about once in every 25 million words; the 152,206th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; 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 importunate?
Importunate appears about once in every 25 million words in written English, the 152,206th 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 importunate?
- UK /ɪmˈpɔːtjʊnət/
- US /ɪmˈpɔɹt͡ʃənət/
As a verb (“To importune, or to obtain by importunity”): /ɪmˈpɔːtjuːneɪt/, /ɪmˈpɔɹtjuːneɪt/.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-I_learned_some_phrases-importunate.wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-importunate.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with importunate?
No other word on PlainSpell ends in the same sounds as importunate (/ɔɹtʃənət/).
Spelled with the same letters in another order: permutation.
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 importunate
- more importunate comparative
- most importunate superlative
- importunates plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- importunating participle, present
- importunated participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does importunate mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Persistent or pressing, often annoyingly so.
- 2
Given to importunate demands, greedily or thoughtlessly demanding.
noun
- 1
An importuner.
verb
- 1
rareTo importune, or to obtain by importunity.
All which notwithstanding, I obtained licence at length to make my supplication to the noble Parliament house; but I could find no messengers till Sir John Seton went, whom I importunated daily to obtain me favor for my return home again.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Importunate in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense to obtain by importunity:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| Portuguese | importunar |
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 importunate come from?
First attested in 1477, in Middle english; from Latin importūnus + -ate (adjective-forming suffix), modelled on Middle French importuné. By surface analysis, importune + -ate (compare inopportune). The noun was substantivized from the adjective, see -ate (noun-forming suffix).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).