obsolescent
/ɑbsəˈlɛsənt/adjective
obsolescent is spelled O-B-S-O-L-E-S-C-E-N-T: 11 letters and 4 syllables. It appears about once in every 10 million words in written English, the 92,628th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, obsolescent means “In the process of becoming obsolete, but not obsolete yet” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in obsolescent?
| Letters | 11: O-B-S-O-L-E-S-C-E-N-T |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 10 million words; the 92,628th 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 obsolescent?
Obsolescent appears about once in every 10 million words in written English, the 92,628th 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 obsolescent?
- UK /ɒbsəˈlɛsənt/
- US /ɑbsəˈlɛsənt/
Obsolescent 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-obsolescent.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with obsolescent?
11 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as obsolescent from its last stressed vowel (/ɛsənt/):
- crescent
- fluorescent
- depressant
- effervescent
- evanescent
- florescent
- pearlescent
- coalescent
- tumescent
- arborescent
- intumescent
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 obsolescent
- more obsolescent comparative
- most obsolescent superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does obsolescent mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
In the process of becoming obsolete, but not obsolete yet.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Obsolescent in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense in the process of becoming obsolete, but not obsolete yet:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | obsolescent |
| German | veraltend |
| Portuguese | obsolescente |
| Spanish | obsolescente |
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 obsolescent come from?
From Latin obsolēscēns.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).