lend
/ˈlɛnd/verb, noun
lend is spelled L-E-N-D: 4 letters and one syllable. It appears 8.3 times per million words in written English, the 8,036th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, lend means “To allow to be used by someone temporarily, on condition that it or its equivalent will be returned” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in lend?
| Letters | 4: L-E-N-D |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 8.3 times per million words; the 8,036th 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 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 lend?
Lend appears 8.3 times per million words in written English, the 8,036th 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 lend?
- US /ˈlɛnd/
- /ˈlɪ̟nd/
- Australia /ˈlend/ ~ /ˈlɛ̝nd/
Lend 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-lend.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with lend?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as lend from its last stressed vowel (/ɛnd/):
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 lend
- lends present, singular, he/she/it, plural
- lending participle, present
- lent participle, past
- leynd
- leind
- lind
- lende
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does lend mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To allow to be used by someone temporarily, on condition that it or its equivalent will be returned.
I will only lend you my car if you fill up the tank.
- 2
To make a loan.
- 3
To be suitable or applicable, to fit.
Poems do not lend themselves to translation easily.
- 4
To afford; to grant or furnish in general.
Can you lend me some assistance?
- 5
proscribedTo borrow.
noun
- 1
Loan (permission to borrow (something)).
“But,” says Arthur, “I wouldn't be proud of your clothes, / For you've only the lend of them, as I suppose.”
- 2
UKThe lumbar region; loin.
- 3
UKThe loins; flank; buttocks.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Lend in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | prêter , se prêter à |
| German | leihen, verleihen, borgen |
| Portuguese | emprestar |
| Spanish | prestar, emprestar, acreer |
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 lend come from?
From earlier len (with excrescent -d, as in sound), from Middle English lenen, lænen, from Old English lǣnan (“to lend; give, grant, lease”), from Proto-West Germanic *laihnijan, from Proto-Germanic *laihnijaną (“to loan”), from Proto-Germanic *laihną (“loan”), from Proto-Indo-European *leykʷ- (“to leave, leave over”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).