inconspicuous
/ˌɪn.kənˈspɪk.ju.əs/adjective
inconspicuous is spelled I-N-C-O-N-S-P-I-C-U-O-U-S: 13 letters and 4 syllables. It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 38,863rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, inconspicuous means “Invisible” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in inconspicuous?
| Letters | 13: I-N-C-O-N-S-P-I-C-U-O-U-S |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 38,863rd 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 inconspicuous?
Inconspicuous appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 38,863rd 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 inconspicuous?
- /ˌɪn.kənˈspɪk.ju.əs/
- British /ˌɪŋkənˈspɪkjʉwəs/
Inconspicuous has 4 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)-Fae7-inconspicuous.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of inconspicuous
- more inconspicuous comparative
- most inconspicuous superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does inconspicuous mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Invisible.
- 2
Not prominent nor easily noticeable.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Inconspicuous in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense not prominent or easily noticeable:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | discret |
| German | unauffällig |
| Portuguese | discreto, inconspícuo |
| Spanish | disimulado, desapercibido, discreto |
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 inconspicuous come from?
Learned borrowing from Late Latin incōnspicuus. Equivalent to in- + conspicuous.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).