parental
/pəˈɹɛn.təl/adjective, noun
parental is spelled P-A-R-E-N-T-A-L: 8 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 6.0 times per million words in written English, the 9,878th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, parental means “Of or relating to a parent” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in parental?
| Letters | 8: P-A-R-E-N-T-A-L |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 6.0 times per million words; the 9,878th 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 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 parental?
Parental appears 6.0 times per million words in written English, the 9,878th 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 parental?
- US /pəˈɹɛn.təl/
- Australia /pəˈɹen.təl/
Parental 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: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-parental.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with parental?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as parental from its last stressed vowel (/ɛntəl/):
- environmental
- fundamental
- dental
- monumental
- supplemental
- ornamental
- departmental
- intercontinental
- judgemental
- consonantal
- labiodental
- tempermental
Spelled with the same letters in another order: paternal, prenatal.
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 parental
- more parental comparative
- most parental superlative
- parentals plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does parental mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Of or relating to a parent.
- 2
Befitting a parent; affectionate; tender.
- 3
Of the generation of organisms that produce a hybrid.
noun
- 1
A person fulfilling a parental role.
Nowadays there are all kinds of potential parentals besides parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles, step-parents, in-laws, older siblings and cousins, and those in civil unions.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Parental in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense relating to parent:
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 parental come from?
From Middle French parental, from Latin parentālis, from parens (“parent”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).