infamous
/ˈɪn.fə.məs/adjective
infamous is spelled I-N-F-A-M-O-U-S: 8 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 5.6 times per million words in written English, the 10,358th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). People search “famous vs infamous” about 3,600 times a month (Google, United States). As an adjective, infamous means “Having a bad reputation; disreputable; notorious; unpleasant or evil; widely known, especially for something scornful” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in infamous?
| Letters | 8: I-N-F-A-M-O-U-S |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 5.6 times per million words; the 10,358th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Pairs people 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); Bing searches in the United States: the average month from September 2025 to August 2026 (Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, read September 30, 2026).
How common is infamous?
Infamous appears 5.6 times per million words in written English, the 10,358th 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 infamous?
- /ˈɪn.fə.məs/
Infamous 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-infamous.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with infamous
Word pairs people search, with the monthly searches for “a vs b” (G: Google, B: Bing, United States).
Sources: Google and Bing searches (September 2025 to August 2026, through DataForSEO); English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
Forms of infamous
- more infamous comparative
- most infamous superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does infamous mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Having a bad reputation; disreputable; notorious; unpleasant or evil; widely known, especially for something scornful.
He was an infamous traitor.
- 2
Causing infamy; disgraceful.
This infamous deed tarnishes all involved.
- 3
UKSubject to a judicial punishment depriving (the person) of certain rights (e.g. the rights to hold public office, exercise the franchise, receive a public pension, serve on a jury, or give testimony in a court of law).
- 4
archaicPunishable by death or imprisonment.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Infamous in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | tristement célèbre , infâme, abominable |
| German | anrüchig, berüchtigt, berühmt-berüchtigt, ehrlos, entehrend, gemein |
| Portuguese | infame, famigerado |
| Spanish | de mala fama, malfamado, malafamado, infame, méndigo |
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 infamous come from?
From Middle English enfamouse, in-fames, infamous, from Medieval Latin īnfāmōsus, from Latin īnfāmis; by surface analysis, in- + famous. Displaced native Old English unhlīsful.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).