modality
noun
modality is spelled M-O-D-A-L-I-T-Y: 8 letters and 4 syllables. It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 36,565th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, modality means “The fact of being modal” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of modality is modalities.
How many letters and syllables are in modality?
| Letters | 8: M-O-D-A-L-I-T-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 36,565th 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 modality?
Modality appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 36,565th 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 modality?
Modality has 4 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-modality.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of modality
- modalities plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does modality mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
The fact of being modal.
- 2
The classification of propositions on the basis on whether they claim possibility, impossibility, contingency or necessity; mode.
- 3
The inflection of a verb that shows how its action is conceived by the speaker.
- 4
A method of diagnosis or therapy.
- 5
Any of the senses (such as sight or taste)
- 6
A particular way in which the information is to be encoded for presentation to humans, i.e. to the type of sign and to the status of reality ascribed to or claimed by a sign, text or genre.
- 7
The organization and structure of the church, as distinct from sodality or parachurch organizations.
- 8
The subject concerning certain diatonic scales known as musical modes.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Modality in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | modalité |
| Portuguese | modalidade |
| Spanish | modalidad |
| German | Modalität |
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 modality come from?
Borrowed from French modalité.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).