mutate
/ˈmju.teɪt/verb
mutate is spelled M-U-T-A-T-E: 6 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 45,363rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, mutate means “To undergo mutation” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in mutate?
| Letters | 6: M-U-T-A-T-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 45,363rd 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 mutate?
Mutate appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 45,363rd 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 mutate?
- UK /mjuːˈteɪt/
- US /ˈmju.teɪt/
Mutate 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: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-mutate.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of mutate
- mutates present, singular, he/she/it
- mutating participle, present
- mutated participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does mutate mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To undergo mutation.
The virus has mutated into a more resilient version.
- 2
To cause mutation.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Mutate in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense to undergo mutation:
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 mutate come from?
First attested in 1796; back-formation from mutation on the basis of -ate (verb-forming suffix), ultimately from Latin mūtō (“to exchange; to change, to vary”). Doublet of moult.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).