mustard
mus·tard[ˈmʌs.təd]noun, adjective
mustard is spelled M-U-S-T-A-R-D: 7 letters and 2 syllables (mus·tard). It appears 4.9 times per million words in written English, the 11,373rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, mustard means “A plant of certain species of the genus Brassica, or of related genera (especially Sinapis alba, in the family Brassicaceae, with yellow flowers, and…” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of mustard is mustards.
How many letters and syllables are in mustard?
| Letters | 7: M-U-S-T-A-R-D |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: mus·tard |
| In writing | 4.9 times per million words; the 11,373rd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is mustard?
Mustard appears 4.9 times per million words in written English, the 11,373rd 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 mustard?
- /ˈmʌstəɹd/
- Australia [ˈmɐ̞s.təd]
- UK [ˈmʌs.təd]
Mustard has 2 syllables, split mus·tard in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-uk-mustard.ogg, En-us-mustard.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of mustard
- mustards plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does mustard mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A plant of certain species of the genus Brassica, or of related genera (especially Sinapis alba, in the family Brassicaceae, with yellow flowers, and linear seed pods).
- 2
Powder or paste made from seeds of the mustard plant, and used as a condiment or a spice.
When the waitress brought the food, I asked whether she had any Dijon mustard.
- 3
The leaves of the mustard plant, used as a salad.
Mustard and cress sandwiches.
- 4
Dark yellow colour, the colour of mustard.
- 5
One of a family of vesicants containing one or more 2-chloroethyl (C₂H₄Cl) groups, commonly used in chemical warfare and cancer chemotherapy.
- 6
The tomalley of a crab, which resembles the condiment.
- 7
Ellipsis of mustard gas.
- 8
colloquialEnergy, power (when throwing a baseball).
adjective
- 1
Of a dark yellow colour.
- 2
slangVery good, or very skilled.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Mustard in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | moutarde |
| German | Senf , senffarben |
| Portuguese | mostardeira, mostarda , amarelo-mostarda |
| Spanish | mostaza, jenabe, jenable |
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 mustard come from?
From Middle English mustard, from Old French moustarde (French moutarde), from moust (“must”), from Latin mustum. Compare Saterland Frisian Muster (“mustard”), Dutch mosterd (“mustard”), German Low German Musterd (“mustard”), Icelandic mustarður (“mustard”). Displaced Middle English senep, from Old English senep, from Latin sināpi (“mustard”). Sometimes mistakenly thought to come from Latin mustum ardens, but such a Latin phrase is not attested, and it is well understood that that the final -ard is derived from Old French -arde. Doublet of mostarda.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).