neoteny
/niˈɑːtəni/noun
neoteny is spelled N-E-O-T-E-N-Y: 7 letters and 4 syllables. It appears about once in every 52 million words in written English, the 225,584th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, neoteny means “The retention of juvenile characteristics in the adult” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of neoteny is neotenies.
How many letters and syllables are in neoteny?
| Letters | 7: N-E-O-T-E-N-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 52 million words; the 225,584th 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 neoteny?
Neoteny appears about once in every 52 million words in written English, the 225,584th 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 neoteny?
- UK /niˈɒtəni/
- US /niˈɑːtəni/
Neoteny has 4 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-neoteny.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with neoteny?
One word on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as neoteny from its last stressed vowel (/ɑtəni/):
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 neoteny
- neotenies plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does neoteny mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
The retention of juvenile characteristics in the adult.
Most amphibians are aquatic only while young, but some amphibians with neoteny remain aquatic even as adults.
- 2
The sexual maturity of an organism still in its larval stage.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Neoteny in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense retention of juvenile characteristics in the adult:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | néoténie |
| German | Neotenie, Verjugendlichung |
| Spanish | neotenia |
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 neoteny come from?
From German Neotenie, coined in 1884 by anatomist Julius Kollmann from Ancient Greek νέος (néos, “young”) + τείνειν (teínein, “to extend, spread or tense”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).