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PlainSpell

lime

/laɪm/noun, verb, adjective

lime is spelled L-I-M-E: 4 letters and one syllable. It appears 7.2 times per million words in written English, the 8,784th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, lime means “Any inorganic material containing calcium, usually calcium oxide (quicklime) or calcium hydroxide (slaked lime)” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of lime is limes.

How many letters and syllables are in lime?

Letters4: L-I-M-E
Syllables1 (from its American pronunciation)
In writing7.2 times per million words; the 8,784th most frequent word form
Wrong spellings searchednone 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 lime?

Lime appears 7.2 times per million words in written English, the 8,784th 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 lime?

  • /laɪm/

Lime 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: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-lime.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).

What rhymes with lime?

No other word on PlainSpell ends in the same sounds as lime.

Spelled with the same letters in another order: mile.

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 lime

  • limes plural, present, singular, he/she/it
  • liming participle, present
  • limed participle, past

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What does lime mean?

The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).

noun

  1. 1

    Any inorganic material containing calcium, usually calcium oxide (quicklime) or calcium hydroxide (slaked lime).

  2. 2

    Any gluey or adhesive substance that traps or captures; sometimes a synonym for birdlime.

  3. 3

    A limelight; any spotlight.

  4. 4

    A deciduous tree of the genus Tilia, especially Tilia × europaea; the linden tree.

  5. 5

    The wood of this tree.

  6. 6

    Any of several green citrus fruit, somewhat smaller and sharper-tasting than a lemon.

  7. 7

    Any of the trees that bear limes, especially Key lime, Citrus aurantiifolia.

  8. 8

    Any of several brilliant, sometimes yellowish, green colours associated with the fruits of a lime tree.

  9. 9

    A particular one of those colours that has been standardized under this name, at least in some organizations' standards.

  10. 10

    slangA fan fiction story which contains sexual references, but stops short of full, explicit descriptions of sexual activity (coined by analogy with lemon).

  11. 11

    A casual gathering to socialize.

  12. 12

    Alternative form of lyam (“a leash”).

verb

  1. 1

    To treat with calcium hydroxide or calcium oxide (lime).

  2. 2

    To smear with birdlime.

  3. 3

    rareTo ensnare, catch, entrap.

  4. 4

    To apply limewash.

  5. 5

    informalTo hang out or socialize in an informal, relaxed environment, especially with friends, for example at a party or on the beach.

adjective

  1. 1

    Containing lime or lime juice.

  2. 2

    Having the aroma or flavor of lime.

  3. 3

    Lime-green.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

Lime in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese

LanguageWords
Frenchchaux (inorganic material containing calcium), lime, limette, citron vert (green citrus fruit), limettier, citronnier vert (citrus tree)
GermanKalk (inorganic material containing calcium), Limone, Limette (green citrus fruit), kalken (to treat with lime), Limetten- (containing lime or lime juice), mit Limettenaroma (having the aroma or taste of lime)
Portuguesecal (inorganic material containing calcium), lima, limão (green citrus fruit), caiar (to treat with lime), visco, visgo (gluey or adhesive substance used to trap or…)
Spanishcal (inorganic material containing calcium), lima, limón (green citrus fruit), limero (citrus tree), encalar (to treat with lime), de lima (containing lime or lime juice)

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 lime come from?

From Middle English lyme, lym, lime, from Old English līm, from Proto-West Germanic *līm, from Proto-Germanic *līmaz, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂leyH- (“to smear”).

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What to look up after lime