pothole
noun
pothole is spelled P-O-T-H-O-L-E: 7 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 41,154th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, pothole means “A shallow pit or other edged depression in a road's surface, especially when caused by erosion, weather or traffic” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of pothole is potholes.
How many letters and syllables are in pothole?
| Letters | 7: P-O-T-H-O-L-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 41,154th 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 pothole?
Pothole appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 41,154th 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 pothole?
Pothole 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: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-pothole.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with pothole
Also written: pot-hole (one word or two).
Sources: English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
Forms of pothole
- potholes plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does pothole mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A shallow pit or other edged depression in a road's surface, especially when caused by erosion, weather or traffic.
- 2
A pit formed in the bed of a turbulent stream.
- 3
A vertical cave system, often found in limestone.
- 4
A pit resulting from unauthorized excavation by treasure-hunters or vandals.
- 5
AustraliaA shallow hole dug for the purpose of prospecting for opal or gold.
- 6
slangA hyperlink with text displayed on a page that is different from the title of the page to which the text links; a piped link.
- 7
A hole or recess on the top of a stove into which a pot may be placed.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Pothole in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense a hole in a road:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | nid de poule, fondrière |
| German | Schlagloch |
| Portuguese | buraco (na estrada) |
| Spanish | bache, hoyanco, poceta |
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 pothole come from?
From dialectal pot (“pit, hollow, cavity”) + hole. The "cave" senses, attested since at least 1809 (as pot-hole), may be from Middle English pot, potte (“a deep hole for a mine, or from peat-digging”), of uncertain origin; perhaps related to English pit, pote, or pot. Compare Scots pott, patt (“a pit dug in the ground; coalpit”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).