point
/pɔɪnt/noun, interjection, verb
point is spelled P-O-I-N-T: 5 letters and one syllable. It appears 347 times per million words in written English, the 263rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, point means “Something tiny, as a pinprick; a very small mark” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of point is points.
How many letters and syllables are in point?
| Letters | 5: P-O-I-N-T |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 347 times per million words; the 263rd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with | |
| Same letters |
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 point?
Point appears 347 times per million words in written English, the 263rd 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 point?
- US /pɔɪnt/
Point has one syllable (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-point.ogg, En-au-point.ogg, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-point.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with point?
One word on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as point from its last stressed vowel (/ɔɪnt/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: pinto, pinot, piton, potin.
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 point
- points plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- p'int
- pointing participle, present
- pointed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does point mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
Something tiny, as a pinprick; a very small mark.
The stars showed as tiny points of yellow light.
- 2
A full stop or other terminal punctuation mark.
- 3
A decimal point (now especially when reading decimal fractions aloud).
10.5 is "ten point five", or ten and a half.
- 4
Each of the marks or strokes written above letters, especially in Semitic languages, to indicate vowels, stress etc.
- 5
A dot or mark used to designate certain tones or time. In ancient music, it distinguished or characterized certain tones or styles (points of perfection, of augmentation, etc.). In modern music, it is placed on the right of a note to raise its value, or prolong its time, by one half.
- 6
A note; a tune.
- 7
A zero-dimensional mathematical object representing a location in one or more dimensions; something considered to have position but no magnitude or direction.
- 8
An individual element in a larger whole; a particular detail, thought, or quality.
The Congress debated the finer points of the bill.
interjection
- 1
Point taken; understood; got it.
verb
- 1
To extend the index finger in the direction of something in order to show where it is or to draw attention to it.
It's rude to point at other people.
- 2
To draw attention to something or indicate a direction.
The arrow of a compass points north
- 3
To face in a particular direction.
- 4
To direct toward an object; to aim.
to point a gun at a wolf, or a cannon at a fort
- 5
To give a point to; to sharpen; to cut, forge, grind, or file to an acute end.
to point a dart, a pencil, or (figuratively) a moral
- 6
To indicate a probability of something.
- 7
To repair mortar.
- 8
To fill up and finish the joints of (a wall), by introducing additional cement or mortar, and bringing it to a smooth surface.
- 9
obsoleteTo appoint.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
How do you abbreviate point?
Wiktionary records one abbreviation of point: pt.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Point in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| Portuguese | ponto , momento , significado , propósito, objetivo , apontar para |
| French | moment , objet , point , point de vue, avis, opinion |
| German | Punkt, Zeitpunkt , zeigen, weisen , Standpunkt |
| Spanish | momento , fondo, punto, argumento, razón , propósito |
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 point come from?
From Middle English poynt, from Old French point m (“dot; minute amount”), from Latin pūnctum (“a hole punched in; a point, puncture”), substantive use of pūnctus m, perfect passive participle of pungō (“to prick, punch”); alternatively, from Old French pointe f (“sharp tip”), from Latin pūncta f (past participle), all from Proto-Italic *pungō (“to sting, prick”). Mostly displaced native Middle English ord (“point”), from Old English ord (“point”). Doublet of pointe, ponto, puncto, punctum, punt, and punto.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).