philander
phi·lan·der/fɪˈlændəɹ/noun, verb
philander is spelled P-H-I-L-A-N-D-E-R: 9 letters and 3 syllables (phi·lan·der). It appears about once in every 6 million words in written English, the 72,332nd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, philander means “A lover” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of philander is philanders.
How many letters and syllables are in philander?
| Letters | 9: P-H-I-L-A-N-D-E-R |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3: phi·lan·der |
| In writing | about once in every 6 million words; the 72,332nd 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; 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 philander?
Philander appears about once in every 6 million words in written English, the 72,332nd 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 philander?
- UK /fɪˈlændə/
- US /fɪˈlændəɹ/
Philander has 3 syllables, split phi·lan·der in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-philander.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with philander?
11 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as philander from its last stressed vowel (/ændəɹ/):
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 philander
- philanders plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- philandering participle, present
- philandered participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does philander mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A lover.
- 2
A South American opossum, bare-tailed woolly opossum, of species Caluromys philander (syn. Didelphis philander).
- 3
obsoleteA greater bilby, an Australian marsupial of species Macrotis lagotis (syn. Perameles lagotis).
verb
- 1
To woo women; to play the male flirt.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Philander in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense To make love to women; to play the male flirt:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| Portuguese | flirtar |
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 philander come from?
As a verb, first seen in the 1824 play Philandering: Or, The Rose Queen, by Samuel Beazley. From the given name Philander, used for love interest or suitor stock characters in several 18th century stories and poems, from Ancient Greek Φίλανδρος (Phílandros), name of the mythological son of the nymph Acacallis and the god Apollo. Semantically disconnected from the adjective φίλανδρος (phílandros, “loving one’s husband; excessively attracted to males, slutty, boy crazy”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).