ketene
noun
ketene is spelled K-E-T-E-N-E: 6 letters. It appears about once in every 33 million words in written English, the 176,009th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, ketene means “any of a class of unsaturated ketones, having a general formula R₁R₂C=C=O, that react as if they were inner acid anhydrides” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of ketene is ketenes.
How many letters and syllables are in ketene?
| Letters | 6: K-E-T-E-N-E |
|---|---|
| In writing | about once in every 33 million words; the 176,009th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is ketene?
Ketene appears about once in every 33 million words in written English, the 176,009th 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).
Forms of ketene
- ketenes plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does ketene mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
any of a class of unsaturated ketones, having a general formula R₁R₂C=C=O, that react as if they were inner acid anhydrides
- 2
the parent compound of this class, CH₂=C=O, an unstable, reactive colourless gas
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Ketene in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense of a class of unsaturated ketones:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| Spanish | queteno |
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 ketene come from?
From keto- + -ene.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).