mortal
/ˈmɔɹ.təl/adjective, noun, adverb
mortal is spelled M-O-R-T-A-L: 6 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 7.2 times per million words in written English, the 8,784th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, mortal means “Susceptible to death by aging, sickness, injury, or wound; not immortal” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in mortal?
| Letters | 6: M-O-R-T-A-L |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 7.2 times per million words; the 8,784th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
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 mortal?
Mortal 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 mortal?
- UK /ˈmɔː.təl/
- US /ˈmɔɹ.təl/
- US [ˈmɔɹ.ɾɫ̩]
Mortal 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: En-us-mortal.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with mortal?
3 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as mortal from its last stressed vowel (/ɔɹtəl/):
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 mortal
- more mortal comparative
- most mortal superlative
- mortals plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does mortal mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Susceptible to death by aging, sickness, injury, or wound; not immortal.
- 2
Causing death; deadly, fatal, killing, lethal (now only of wounds, injuries etc.).
- 3
Punishable by death.
- 4
Fatally vulnerable.
- 5
Of or relating to the time of death.
- 6
Affecting as if with power to kill; deathly; related to a life-and-death struggle.
mortal enemy
- 7
Human; belonging or pertaining to people who are mortal.
mortal wit or knowledge; mortal power
- 8
Very painful or tedious; wearisome.
a sermon lasting two mortal hours
noun
- 1
A human; someone susceptible to death.
Her wisdom was beyond that of a mere mortal.
adverb
- 1
colloquialMortally; enough to cause death.
It's mortal cold out there.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Mortal in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | mortel , mortelle |
| German | sterblich , Sterblicher, Sterbliche , tödlich |
| Portuguese | mortal |
| Spanish | mortal |
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 mortal come from?
From Middle English mortal, mortel, from Old French mortal, and their source Latin mortālis, from mors (“death”). In this sense, displaced native deadly, from Old English dēadlīċ.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).