Pleistocene
/ˈplaɪstəˌsiːn/adjective
Pleistocene is spelled P-L-E-I-S-T-O-C-E-N-E: 11 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 1.0 times per million words in written English, the 28,556th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, Pleistocene means “Of a geologic epoch within the Quaternary period from about 2,588,000 to 11,700 years ago (earlier definition 1.7 million to 11,000 years ago)…” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in Pleistocene?
| Letters | 11: P-L-E-I-S-T-O-C-E-N-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.0 times per million words; the 28,556th 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 Pleistocene?
Pleistocene appears 1.0 times per million words in written English, the 28,556th 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 Pleistocene?
- /ˈplaɪstəˌsiːn/
- /-toʊ-/
Pleistocene 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-Pleistocene.wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Wodencafe-Pleistocene.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of Pleistocene
- Ps
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does Pleistocene mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Of a geologic epoch within the Quaternary period from about 2,588,000 to 11,700 years ago (earlier definition 1.7 million to 11,000 years ago); marked by the evolution of man, and the extinction of the large mammals.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Pleistocene in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense of the Pleistocene epoch:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | Pléistocène |
| German | pleistozänisch |
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 Pleistocene come from?
From Ancient Greek πλεῖστος (pleîstos, “most”) and καινός (kainós, “new”), meaning “newest”, coined by Charles Lyell in 1839. By surface analysis, containing the suffix -cene.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).