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PlainSpell

improve

/ɪmˈpɹuːv/verb

improve is spelled I-M-P-R-O-V-E: 7 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 62 times per million words in written English, the 1,696th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, improve means “To make (something) better; to increase the value or productivity (of something)” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).

How many letters and syllables are in improve?

Letters7: I-M-P-R-O-V-E
Syllables2 (from its American pronunciation)
In writing62 times per million words; the 1,696th most frequent word form
Wrong spellings searchednone 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 improve?

Improve appears 62 times per million words in written English, the 1,696th 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 improve?

  • /ɪmˈpɹuːv/

Improve has 2 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-improve.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).

Forms of improve

  • improves present, singular, he/she/it
  • improving participle, present
  • improved participle, past
  • emprove

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What does improve mean?

The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).

verb

  1. 1

    To make (something) better; to increase the value or productivity (of something).

    Painting the woodwork will improve this house.

  2. 2

    To become better.

    I have improved since taking the tablets.

  3. 3

    datedTo use or employ to good purpose; to turn to profitable account.

    to improve one's time;  to improve his means

  4. 4

    obsoleteTo disprove or make void; to refute.

  5. 5

    obsoleteTo disapprove of; to find fault with; to reprove; to censure.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

How do you abbreviate improve?

Wiktionary records one abbreviation of improve: impv.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

Improve in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese

LanguageWords
Frenchaméliorer, amender (to make something better), s'améliorer (to become better)
Germanverbessern (to make something better), sich verbessern (to become better)
Portuguesemelhorar (to make something better)
Spanishmejorar, embonar (to make something better)

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 improve come from?

From Anglo-Norman emprouwer, from Old French en- + prou (“profit”), from Vulgar Latin prode (“advantageous, profitable”).

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What to look up after improve