neon
ne·on/ˈniˌɑn/noun, adjective
neon is spelled N-E-O-N: 4 letters and 2 syllables (ne·on). It appears 4.4 times per million words in written English, the 12,216th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, neon means “The chemical element (symbol Ne) with an atomic number of 10. The second of the noble gases, it is a colourless, odorless inert gas” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of neon is neons.
How many letters and syllables are in neon?
| Letters | 4: N-E-O-N |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: ne·on |
| In writing | 4.4 times per million words; the 12,216th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with | |
| Same letters |
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); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is neon?
Neon appears 4.4 times per million words in written English, the 12,216th 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 neon?
- /ˈni.ɒn/
- US /ˈniˌɑn/
Neon has 2 syllables, split ne·on in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-neon.ogg, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Tesco250-neon.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with neon?
2 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as neon from its last stressed vowel (/iɑn/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: none.
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 neon
- neons plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does neon mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
The chemical element (symbol Ne) with an atomic number of 10. The second of the noble gases, it is a colourless, odorless inert gas.
- 2
A form or sample of the element.
- 3
Neon signs or lights, collectively.
- 4
A neon tetra fish.
- 5
Describes bright and vibrant colors having a fluorescent look.
adjective
- 1
That resembles a neon light; extremely bright; fluorescent
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Neon in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
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 neon come from?
Learned borrowing from Ancient Greek νέον (néon), neuter of νέος (néos, “new”), from earlier *νέϝος (*néwos), from Proto-Hellenic *newos, from Proto-Indo-European *néwos. By surface analysis, neo- + -on (suffix used in all noble gases).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).