plosive
/ˈploʊsɪv/noun, adjective
plosive is spelled P-L-O-S-I-V-E: 7 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 21 million words in written English, the 139,999th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, plosive means “A speech sound produced by opening a closed vocal tract” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of plosive is plosives.
How many letters and syllables are in plosive?
| Letters | 7: P-L-O-S-I-V-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 21 million words; the 139,999th 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 and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; 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 plosive?
Plosive appears about once in every 21 million words in written English, the 139,999th 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 plosive?
- UK /ˈpləʊsɪv/
- UK /ˈpləʊzɪv/
- US /ˈploʊsɪv/
Plosive has 2 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: En-us-plosive.oga, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with plosive?
2 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as plosive from its last stressed vowel (/oʊsɪv/):
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 plosive
- plosives plural
- more plosive comparative
- plosiver comparative
- most plosive superlative
- plosivest superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does plosive mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A speech sound produced by opening a closed vocal tract.
adjective
- 1
Produced from opening a previously closed oral passage.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Plosive in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | occlusif |
| German | Plosiv, Verschlusslaut, Explosiv |
| Portuguese | oclusiva, plosiva |
| Spanish | oclusiva, plosiva, implosiva , oclusivo, plosivo |
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 plosive come from?
Clipping of explosive.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).