launch
/lɔːnt͡ʃ/verb, noun
launch is spelled L-A-U-N-C-H: 6 letters and one syllable. It appears 49 times per million words in written English, the 2,072nd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, launch means “To throw (a projectile such as a lance, dart or ball); to hurl; to propel with force” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in launch?
| Letters | 6: L-A-U-N-C-H |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 49 times per million words; the 2,072nd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| 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 launch?
Launch appears 49 times per million words in written English, the 2,072nd 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 launch?
- UK /lɔːnt͡ʃ/
- British /loːnt͡ʃ/
- /lɔnt͡ʃ/
Launch 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-launch.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with launch?
No other word on PlainSpell ends in the same sounds as launch (/ɔntʃ/).
Spelled with the same letters in another order: nuchal.
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 launch
- launches present, singular, he/she/it, plural
- launching participle, present
- launched participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does launch mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To throw (a projectile such as a lance, dart or ball); to hurl; to propel with force.
- 2
obsoleteTo pierce with, or as with, a lance.
- 3
To cause (a vessel) to move or slide from the land or a larger vessel into the water; to set afloat.
- 4
To cause (a rocket, balloon, etc., or the payload thereof) to begin its flight upward from the ground.
NASA launched several unmanned rockets before launching any of the Mercury astronauts.
- 5
To send out; to start (someone) on a mission or project; to give a start to (something); to put in operation
Our business launched a new project.
- 6
To start (a program or feature); to execute or bring into operation.
Double-click an icon to launch the associated application.
- 7
To release; to put onto the market for sale
- 8
Of a ship, rocket, balloon, etc.: to depart on a voyage; to take off.
noun
- 1
The movement of a vessel from land into the water; especially, the sliding on ways from the stocks on which it is built. (Compare: to splash a ship.)
- 2
The act or fact of launching (a ship/vessel, a project, a new book, etc.).
- 3
An event held to celebrate the launch of a ship/vessel, project, a new book, etc.; a launch party.
product launch
- 4
The boat of the largest size and/or of most importance belonging to a ship of war, and often called the "captain's boat" or "captain's launch".
- 5
A boat used to convey guests to and from a yacht.
- 6
An open boat of any size powered by steam, petrol, electricity, etc.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Launch in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | lancer , lancement |
| German | abschießen, lancieren , Start , starten, öffnen , Barkasse |
| Portuguese | lançar, arremessar, jogar, tacar , lançamento , lancear |
| Spanish | lanzar , lanzamiento , lancear , botar , lancha, lanchón |
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 launch come from?
From Middle English launchen (“to throw as a lance”), Old French lanchier, another form (Old Northern French/Norman variant, compare Jèrriais lanchi) of lancier, French lancer, from lance.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).