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killing

/ˈkɪl.ɪŋ/adjective, noun, verb

killing is spelled K-I-L-L-I-N-G: 7 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 76 times per million words in written English, the 1,394th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, killing means “That literally deprives of life; lethal, deadly, fatal” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).

How many letters and syllables are in killing?

Letters7: K-I-L-L-I-N-G
Syllables2 (from its American pronunciation)
In writing76 times per million words; the 1,394th most frequent word form
Wrong spellings searchednone 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 killing?

Killing appears 76 times per million words in written English, the 1,394th 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 killing?

  • /ˈkɪl.ɪŋ/

Killing has 2 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-killing.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).

Words people confuse with killing

Also written: killin'.

Sources: English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).

Forms of killing

  • more killing comparative
  • most killing superlative
  • killings plural

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What does killing mean?

The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).

adjective

  1. 1

    That literally deprives of life; lethal, deadly, fatal.

  2. 2

    datedDevastatingly attractive.

  3. 3

    informalThat makes one ‘die’ with laughter; very funny.

noun

  1. 1

    The act of killing.

  2. 2

    An instance of someone being killed.

  3. 3

    informalA large amount of money.

    He made a killing on the stock market.

verb

  1. 1

    present participle and gerund of kill (a form of kill)

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

Killing in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese

LanguageWords
Portuguesemortal (lethal, deadly, fatal), de matar (devastatingly attractive), assassinato (instance of someone being killed)
Spanishmortal (lethal, deadly, fatal), matanza, matazón (the act of killing)
Frenchmeurtre (instance of someone being killed)
GermanTöten, Erlegen (instance of someone being killed), Reibach (large amount of money)

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 killing come from?

From Middle English kyllyng; equivalent to kill + -ing.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

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