leper
/ˈlɛpɚ/noun
leper is spelled L-E-P-E-R: 5 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 37,459th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, leper means “A person who has leprosy, a person suffering from Hansen's disease” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of leper is lepers.
How many letters and syllables are in leper?
| Letters | 5: L-E-P-E-R |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 37,459th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with | |
| 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 leper?
Leper appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 37,459th 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 leper?
- US /ˈlɛpɚ/
Leper 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-leper.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with leper?
3 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as leper from its last stressed vowel (/ɛpəɹ/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: repel.
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 leper
- lepers plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- lepering participle, present
- lepered participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does leper mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A person who has leprosy, a person suffering from Hansen's disease.
- 2
Synonym of outcast: A person who is shunned, a pariah.
verb
- 1
archaicTo afflict with leprosy.
- 2
archaicSynonym of infect.
- 3
archaicSynonym of disfigure.
- 4
archaicSynonym of taint.
- 5
archaicSynonym of ostracize.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Leper in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense person who has leprosy:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | léprosé, lépreux |
| German | Aussätziger, Leprakranker |
| Portuguese | leproso, leprosa |
| Spanish | leproso, leprosa |
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 leper come from?
From Middle English lepre, leprosy, from Old French [Term?], from Latin leprae, lepra, from Ancient Greek λέπρα (lépra).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).