jar
/d͡ʒɑɹ/noun, verb
jar is spelled J-A-R: 3 letters and one syllable. It appears 8.5 times per million words in written English, the 7,910th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, jar means “An earthenware container, either with two or no handles, for holding oil, water, wine, etc., or used for burial” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of jar is jars.
How many letters and syllables are in jar?
| Letters | 3: J-A-R |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 8.5 times per million words; the 7,910th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with | |
| Same letters |
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); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is jar?
Jar appears 8.5 times per million words in written English, the 7,910th 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 jar?
- UK /d͡ʒɑː/
- UK [d͡ʒɑː(ɹ)]
- US /d͡ʒɑɹ/
Jar has one syllable (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-jar.ogg, En-au-jar.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with jar?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as jar from its last stressed vowel (/ɑɹ/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: raj.
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 jar
- jars plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- jarring participle, present
- jarred participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does jar mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
An earthenware container, either with two or no handles, for holding oil, water, wine, etc., or used for burial.
She refilled the jar with peanuts today evening.
- 2
A small, approximately cylindrical container, normally made of clay or glass, for holding fruit, preserves, etc., or for ornamental purposes.
- 3
A container and its contents; as much as fills such a container; a jarful.
- 4
IrelandUKcolloquialA pint glass
- 5
IrelandUKcolloquialA glass of beer or cider, served by the pint.
- 6
A clashing or discordant set of sounds, particularly with a quivering or vibrating quality.
- 7
A quivering or vibrating movement or sensation resulting from something being shaken or struck.
- 8
A sense of alarm or dismay.
- 9
The effect of something contradictory or discordant; a clash.
- 10
archaicA disagreement, a dispute, a quarrel; (uncountable) contention, discord; quarrelling.
verb
- 1
To preserve (food) in a jar.
- 2
To knock, shake, or strike sharply, especially causing a quivering or vibrating movement.
He hit it with a hammer, hoping he could jar it loose.
- 3
To harm or injure by such action.
- 4
To shock or surprise.
I think the accident jarred him, as he hasn’t got back in a car since.
- 5
To act in disagreement or opposition, to clash, to be at odds with; to interfere; to dispute, to quarrel.
- 6
To (cause something to) give forth a rudely tremulous or quivering sound; to (cause something to) sound discordantly or harshly.
The clashing notes jarred on my ears.
- 7
To quiver or vibrate due to being shaken or struck.
- 8
Of the appearance, form, style, etc., of people and things: to look strangely different; to stand out awkwardly from its surroundings; to be incongruent.
noun
- 1
Initialism of Java archive.
- 2
Initialism of Jewish Autonomous Region
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Jar in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | jarre , pot, bocal |
| German | Krug, Becher, Topf , Glas, Gefäß , Ruck |
| Portuguese | jarro, jarra |
| Spanish | tarro, bote, frasco |
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 jar come from?
Inherited from Middle English jarre (“jar”), from Medieval Latin jarra, or from Middle French jarre (“liquid measure”) (from Old French jare; modern French jarre (“earthenware jar”)), or from Spanish jarra, jarro (“jug, pitcher; mug, stein”), all from Arabic جَرَّة (jarra, “earthen receptacle”). The word is cognate with Italian giara (“jar; crock”), Occitan jarro, Portuguese jarra, jarro (“jug; ewer, pitcher”). The verb is derived from the noun.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).