objective
/əbˈd͡ʒɛk.tɪv/adjective, noun
objective is spelled O-B-J-E-C-T-I-V-E: 9 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 23 times per million words in written English, the 3,875th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). People search “objective vs subjective” about 49,500 times a month (Google, United States). As an adjective, objective means “Of or relating to a material object, actual existence or reality” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in objective?
| Letters | 9: O-B-J-E-C-T-I-V-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 23 times per million words; the 3,875th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Pairs people 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); Bing searches in the United States: the average month from September 2025 to August 2026 (Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, read September 30, 2026); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is objective?
Objective appears 23 times per million words in written English, the 3,875th 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 objective?
- UK /ɒbˈd͡ʒɛk.tɪv/
- UK /əbˈd͡ʒɛk.tɪv/
- US /əbˈd͡ʒɛk.tɪv/
Objective has 3 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-objective.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with objective
Word pairs people search, with the monthly searches for “a vs b” (G: Google, B: Bing, United States).
Sources: Google and Bing searches (September 2025 to August 2026, through DataForSEO); English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
What rhymes with objective?
10 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as objective from its last stressed vowel (/ɛktɪv/):
- perspective
- respective
- protective
- directive
- retrospective
- corrective
- introspective
- overprotective
- imperfective
- surjective
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 objective
- more objective comparative
- most objective superlative
- objectives plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does objective mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Of or relating to a material object, actual existence or reality.
- 2
Not influenced by the strong emotions or prejudices.
- 3
Based on observed facts; without purely subjective assessment.
- 4
Mind-independent
- 5
Of, or relating to a noun or pronoun used as the object of a verb.
The objective complement in "She makes us angry" is the adjective "angry".
- 6
Of, or relating to verbal conjugation that indicates the object (patient) of an action. (In linguistic descriptions of Tundra Nenets, among others.)
noun
- 1
A material object that physically exists.
- 2
A goal that is striven for.
- 3
The objective case.
- 4
a noun or pronoun in the objective case.
- 5
The lens or lenses of a camera, microscope, or other optical device closest to the object being examined.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Objective in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | objectif, objective , but |
| German | objektiv , Ziel , Gegenstand, Objekt , Objektiv |
| Portuguese | objetivo , objetiva |
| Spanish | objetivo |
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 objective come from?
From Middle English obgectyf, from Middle French objectif and its etymon Medieval Latin obiectīvus. By surface analysis, object + -ive.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).