phenyl
/ˈfɛn.l̩/noun
phenyl is spelled P-H-E-N-Y-L: 6 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 4 million words in written English, the 56,108th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, phenyl means “A univalent hydrocarbon radical, C₆H₅ (benzene minus one hydrogen atom), and the basis of an immense number of aromatic derivatives” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of phenyl is phenyls.
How many letters and syllables are in phenyl?
| Letters | 6: P-H-E-N-Y-L |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 4 million words; the 56,108th 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 phenyl?
Phenyl appears about once in every 4 million words in written English, the 56,108th 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 phenyl?
- UK /ˈfiː.naɪl/
- UK /ˈfɛn.l̩/
- US /ˈfɛn.l̩/
Phenyl has 2 syllables (counted from the pronunciation).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-phenyl.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of phenyl
- phenyls plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does phenyl mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A univalent hydrocarbon radical, C₆H₅ (benzene minus one hydrogen atom), and the basis of an immense number of aromatic derivatives.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
How do you abbreviate phenyl?
Wiktionary records one abbreviation of phenyl: Ph.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Phenyl in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense univalent hydrocarbon radical (C6H5):
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| Spanish | fenilo |
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 phenyl come from?
Borrowed from French phényle, derived from the root of Ancient Greek φαίνω (phaínō, “to shine”) plus ὕλη (húlē, “wood; material, substance”). Equivalent to phen- + -yl.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).