lemma
lem·ma/ˈlɛmə/noun
lemma is spelled L-E-M-M-A: 5 letters and 2 syllables (lem·ma). It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 39,832nd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data, counting Lemma, the name). As a noun, lemma means “A proposition proved or accepted for immediate use in the proof of some other proposition” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of lemma is lemmas or lemmata.
How many letters and syllables are in lemma?
| Letters | 5: L-E-M-M-A |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: lem·ma |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 39,832nd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
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); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is lemma?
Lemma appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 39,832nd most frequent word form in the list. The list counts every capitalisation together, so this includes Lemma, the name.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce lemma?
- US /ˈlɛmə/
- /ˈlɪmə/
Lemma has 2 syllables, split lem·ma in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-lemma.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with lemma?
3 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as lemma from its last stressed vowel (/ɛmə/):
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 lemma
- lemmas plural
- lemmata plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does lemma mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A proposition proved or accepted for immediate use in the proof of some other proposition.
- 2
A proposition originally used for such a purpose, but having later acquired a greater, independent, importance; a fundamental (often pithy) and widely-used result.
- 3
The canonical form of an inflected word; i.e., the form usually found as the headword in a dictionary, such as the nominative singular of a noun, the bare infinitive of a verb, etc.
Cat is a lemma, but cats is not.
- 4
The theoretical abstract conceptual form of a word, representing a specific meaning, before the creation of a specific phonological form as the sounds of a lexeme, which may find representation in a specific written form as a dictionary or lexicographic word.
- 5
The outer shell of a fruit or similar body.
- 6
One of the specialized bracts around the floret in grasses.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Lemma in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | lemme , entrée, terme vedette, mot vedette |
| German | Lemma, Hilfssatz , Stichwort |
| Portuguese | lema |
| Spanish | lema |
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 lemma come from?
Borrowed from Ancient Greek λῆμμᾰ (lêmmă, “premise, assumption”), from the same root as λᾰμβᾰ́νω (lămbắnō, “to take”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).