paroxysm
par·ox·y·sm/ˈpɛɹəkˌsɪzəm/noun
paroxysm is spelled P-A-R-O-X-Y-S-M: 8 letters and 4 syllables (par·ox·y·sm). It appears about once in every 18 million words in written English, the 127,184th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, paroxysm means “A period (especially one of several recurring periods) during the course of an illness when symptoms worsen; a sudden attack of a disease symptom…” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of paroxysm is paroxysms.
How many letters and syllables are in paroxysm?
| Letters | 8: P-A-R-O-X-Y-S-M |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4: par·ox·y·sm |
| In writing | about once in every 18 million words; the 127,184th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
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).
How common is paroxysm?
Paroxysm appears about once in every 18 million words in written English, the 127,184th 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 paroxysm?
- UK /ˈpæɹəksɪz(ə)m/
- US /ˈpɛɹəkˌsɪzəm/
- US /pəˈɹɑk-/
Paroxysm has 4 syllables, split par·ox·y·sm in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-paroxysm.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of paroxysm
- paroxysms plural
- paroxism
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does paroxysm mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A period (especially one of several recurring periods) during the course of an illness when symptoms worsen; a sudden attack of a disease symptom, such as a bout of coughing or a seizure.
- 2
Chiefly followed by of: a sudden outburst of violent activity or feeling; also, the most severe part of an activity or incident; the climax.
- 3
archaicAn outburst of a violent argument or disagreement.
- 4
A violent occurrence of a natural phenomenon, such as an earthquake, thunderstorm, or volcanic eruption; specifically (volcanology), the most explosive event during a series of volcanic eruptions.
- 5
rareDisastrous or sudden change.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Paroxysm in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense period (especially one of several recurring periods) during the course of an ill:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | paroxysme |
| German | Paroxysmus |
| Portuguese | paroxismo |
| Spanish | paroxismo |
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.