priestess
/ˈpristɪs/noun, verb
priestess is spelled P-R-I-E-S-T-E-S-S: 9 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 30,789th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, priestess means “A woman with religious duties and responsibilities in certain religions” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of priestess is priestesses.
How many letters and syllables are in priestess?
| Letters | 9: P-R-I-E-S-T-E-S-S |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 1 million words; the 30,789th 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 priestess?
Priestess appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 30,789th 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 priestess?
- UK /ˈpriːstɛs/
- UK /priːˈstɛs/
- US /ˈpristɪs/
Priestess 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-priestess.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of priestess
- priestesses plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- priestress
- priestessing participle, present
- priestessed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does priestess mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A woman with religious duties and responsibilities in certain religions.
- 2
A female Christian priest or minister, typically in a Protestant, Old Catholic, or independent Catholic denomination.
- 3
colloquialobsoleteA priest’s wife.
verb
- 1
To oversee (a pagan ceremony, etc.) as priestess.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Priestess in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense woman with religious duties:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | prêtresse |
| German | Priesterin |
| Portuguese | sacerdotisa |
| Spanish | sacerdotisa |
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 priestess come from?
From priest + -ess. Compare Middle English preesteresse (“priestess”). Piecewise doublet of presbyteress.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).