pituitary
/pɪˈtuɪˌtɛɹi/adjective, noun
pituitary is spelled P-I-T-U-I-T-A-R-Y: 9 letters and 5 syllables. It appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 31,168th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, pituitary means “Of or relating to the pituitary gland” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in pituitary?
| Letters | 9: P-I-T-U-I-T-A-R-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 5 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 1 million words; the 31,168th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
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).
How common is pituitary?
Pituitary appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 31,168th 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 pituitary?
- UK /pɪˈtjuːɪt(ə)ɹi/
- UK /pɪˈt͡ʃuːɪt(ə)ɹi/
- US /pɪˈtuɪˌtɛɹi/
Pituitary has 5 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-pituitary.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of pituitary
- pituitaries plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does pituitary mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Of or relating to the pituitary gland.
- 2
Mucous.
noun
- 1
The pituitary gland; sometimes including together with the pituitary stalk.
- 2
An extract from the pituitary gland.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Pituitary in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense of or relating to the pituitary gland:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | pituitaire, hypophysaire |
| Portuguese | pituitário, hipofisário |
| Spanish | pituitario |
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 pituitary come from?
Learned borrowing from Latin pītuītārius (“mucous”), from pītuīta (“mucus, phlegm”). First attested in the 1610s. First attested as a noun by 1899. The term was adopted as the name for the gland, because it was believed that it channeled mucus to the nose.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).