lemming
/lɛm.ɪŋ/noun
lemming is spelled L-E-M-M-I-N-G: 7 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 5 million words in written English, the 64,400th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, lemming means “A small arctic and subarctic rodent of the tribes Lemmini, Dicrostonychini and Lagurini” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of lemming is lemmings.
How many letters and syllables are in lemming?
| Letters | 7: L-E-M-M-I-N-G |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 5 million words; the 64,400th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none 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 lemming?
Lemming appears about once in every 5 million words in written English, the 64,400th 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 lemming?
- UK /lɛm.ɪŋ/
Lemming 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: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-lemming.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of lemming
- lemmings plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does lemming mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A small arctic and subarctic rodent of the tribes Lemmini, Dicrostonychini and Lagurini.
- 2
Any member of a group given to conformity or groupthink, especially a group poised to follow a leader off a cliff.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Lemming in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | lemming , mouton de Panurge |
| German | Lemming |
| Portuguese | lêmingue, lémingue |
| Spanish | lemming |
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 lemming come from?
From Danish and Norwegian lemming, from Old Norse lómundr, læmingi, læmingr (“lemming”), perhaps from Sami luomek. Sense 2 derives from a longstanding myth that they exhibit so much herd mentality that populations jump off cliffs to their deaths together.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).