monosyllabic

/ˌmɒnə(ʊ)sɪˈlabɪk/

//ˌmɒnə(ʊ)sɪˈlabɪk// adj

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"monosyllabic" is a 12-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“monosyllabic” is uncommon English (frequency #73,452 among 4,057 “M” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#73,452
frequency rank, English
4,057
“M” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Consisting of one syllable.

Corpus desk

Index EN-monosyllabic · monosyllabic · English

monosyllabic · rank #73,452 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #73,452
  • LEN-MEGA 12 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,057
  • PHOTO-FINISH moonbeam

Nearest frequency peer: moonbeam (+1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Long-tail ranks near “monosyllabic”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “monosyllabic” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for monosyllabic
PropertyValue
Headwordmonosyllabic
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˌmɒnə(ʊ)sɪˈlabɪk/
Letters12
Frequency rank#73,452
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “monosyllabic” in English

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).monosyllabicfalls in this rarity band:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “moonbeam” (#73,453), “Moncada” (#73,450), “Morpeth” (#73,455). Among 4,057 “M” headwords, “monosyllabic” is #73,452. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

monosyllabic is uncommon English at frequency #73,452 among 4,057 “M” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed /ˌmɒnə(ʊ)sɪˈlabɪk/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for monosyllabic, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Late Latin monosyllabicus, from Latin monosyllabus, from Hellenistic Ancient Greek μονοσύλλαβος (monosúllabos). By surface analysis, monosyllable + -ic. The correct English form is monosyllabic, spelled M-O-N-O-S-Y-L-L-A-B-I-C.

Definition

  1. 1
    Consisting of one syllable.
  2. 2
    Using monosyllables, speaking in monosyllables; curt.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how monosyllabic appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. monosyllabic word
  2. monosyllabic responses

Etymology

Borrowed from Late Latin monosyllabicus, from Latin monosyllabus, from Hellenistic Ancient Greek μονοσύλλαβος (monosúllabos). By surface analysis, monosyllable + -ic.

Antonyms

polysyllabic

This word in other languages

monosílabo(Español)monosyllabique(Français)einsilbig(Deutsch)monossilábico(Português)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "monosyllabic"?
"monosyllabic" is spelled M-O-N-O-S-Y-L-L-A-B-I-C. The IPA pronunciation is /ˌmɒnə(ʊ)sɪˈlabɪk/.
What does "monosyllabic" mean?
As an adjective, "monosyllabic" means: Consisting of one syllable.
How do you pronounce "monosyllabic"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "monosyllabic" is /ˌmɒnə(ʊ)sɪˈlabɪk/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "monosyllabic"?
Borrowed from Late Latin monosyllabicus, from Latin monosyllabus, from Hellenistic Ancient Greek μονοσύλλαβος (monosúllabos). By surface analysis, monosyllable + -ic. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "monosyllabic", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 12 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Mesoamerican#73,429holistically#73,269strategizing#73,664subarachnoid#73,669

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list