monosyllable

noun

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

The verdict

“monosyllable” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
12
letters

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

Corpus desk

Index EN-monosyllable · monosyllable · English

monosyllable · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 12 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "M" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

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.

Key facts for monosyllable
PropertyValue
Headwordmonosyllable
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters12
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “monosyllable” in English

monosyllablesits beyond the 100,000 most-frequent English words, in the long tail of technical, archaic, or otherwise rare vocabulary where spelling doubt tends to strike hardest.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

monosyllable is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

monosyllable has no tracked misspelling variants, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: From mono- + syllable. The correct English form is monosyllable, spelled M-O-N-O-S-Y-L-L-A-B-L-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A word of one syllable.
  2. 2
    A euphemism for the word cunt

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. For quotations using this term, see Citations:monosyllable.

Etymology

From mono- + syllable.

This word in other languages

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "monosyllable"?
"monosyllable" is spelled M-O-N-O-S-Y-L-L-A-B-L-E.
What does "monosyllable" mean?
As a noun, "monosyllable" means: A word of one syllable.
What is the origin of the word "monosyllable"?
From mono- + syllable. 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list