intimate
/ˈɪn.tɪ.mət/adjective, noun, verb
intimate is spelled I-N-T-I-M-A-T-E: 8 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 11 times per million words in written English, the 6,456th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, intimate means “Closely acquainted; familiar” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in intimate?
| Letters | 8: I-N-T-I-M-A-T-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 11 times per million words; the 6,456th 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 intimate?
Intimate appears 11 times per million words in written English, the 6,456th 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 intimate?
- /ˈɪn.tɪ.mət/
As a verb (“To suggest or disclose (something) discreetly”): /ˈɪn.tɪ.meɪt/.
Intimate 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-intimate-noun-adj.ogg, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Wodencafe-intimate.wav, En-us-intimate-verb.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of intimate
- more intimate comparative
- most intimate superlative
- intimates plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- intimating participle, present
- intimated participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does intimate mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Closely acquainted; familiar.
an intimate friend
- 2
Personal; private.
an intimate setting
- 3
Pertaining to sex organs or underwear.
- 4
Pertaining to sexual acts or a sexual relationship.
She enjoyed some intimate time alone with her husband.
- 5
Pertaining to details that require great familiarity to know.
The candidate showed an intimate knowledge of the inner workings of politics.
- 6
Very finely mixed.
Black powder consists of an intimate mixture of potassium nitrate, charcoal, and sulfur.
noun
- 1
A very close friend.
Only a couple of intimates had ever read his writing.
- 2
Women's underwear, sleepwear, or lingerie, especially offered for sale in a store.
You'll find bras and panties in the intimates section upstairs.
verb
- 1
To suggest or disclose (something) discreetly.
He intimated that we should leave before the argument escalated.
- 2
IndiaTo notify.
I will intimate you when the details are available.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Intimate in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | intime |
| German | vertraut, innig , intim , vorsichtig andeuten |
| Portuguese | íntimo , pessoal |
| Spanish | íntimo , intimar |
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 intimate come from?
Borrowed from Latin intimātus, the perfect passive participle of intimō (“to put or bring into, to impress, to make familiar”) (see -ate (adjective forming suffix)), from intimus (“inmost, innermost, most intimate”), superlative of intus (“within”), from in (“in”); see interior.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).