prize
/ˈpɹaɪ̯z/noun, verb, adjective
prize is spelled P-R-I-Z-E: 5 letters and one syllable. It appears 39 times per million words in written English, the 2,523rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). People search “price vs prize” about 260 times a month (Google, United States). As a noun, prize means “That which is taken from another; something captured; a thing seized by force, stratagem, or superior power” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of prize is prizes.
How many letters and syllables are in prize?
| Letters | 5: P-R-I-Z-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 |
| In writing | 39 times per million words; the 2,523rd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Pairs people search | |
| Rhymes with | |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); Bing searches in the United States: the average month from September 2025 to August 2026 (Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, read September 30, 2026); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is prize?
Prize appears 39 times per million words in written English, the 2,523rd 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 prize?
- US /ˈpɹaɪ̯z/
- Australia /ˈpɹɑ̟ɪ̯z/
- Australia /ˈpɹɒ̈ɪ̯z/
Prize has one syllable.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-prize.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with prize
Word pairs people search, with the monthly searches for “a vs b” (G: Google, B: Bing, United States).
Also written: price, pris, prise.
Sources: Google and Bing searches (September 2025 to August 2026, through DataForSEO); English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
What rhymes with prize?
8 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as prize from its last stressed vowel (/aɪz/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: pizer.
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 prize
- prizes plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- prizing participle, present
- prized participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does prize mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
That which is taken from another; something captured; a thing seized by force, stratagem, or superior power.
- 2
Anything captured by a belligerent using the rights of war; especially, property captured at sea in virtue of the rights of war, as a vessel.
- 3
An honour or reward striven for in a competitive contest; anything offered to be competed for, or as an inducement to, or reward of, effort.
- 4
That which may be won by chance, as in a lottery.
- 5
Anything worth striving for; a valuable possession held or in prospect.
- 6
obsoleteA contest for a reward; competition.
- 7
A lever; a pry; also, the hold of a lever.
verb
- 1
To consider highly valuable; to esteem.
- 2
obsoleteTo set or estimate the value of; to appraise; to price; to rate.
- 3
To move with a lever; to force up or open; to prise or pry.
- 4
obsoleteTo compete in a prizefight.
adjective
- 1
Having won a prize; award-winning.
a prize vegetable
- 2
First-rate; exceptional.
He was a prize fool.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Prize in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| Spanish | botín , premio |
| German | Preis , Beute , Gewinn |
| French | prix , estimer |
| Portuguese | prêmio, prémio |
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 prize come from?
From Middle English prise, from Old French prise (“a taking, capture, a seizure, a thing seized, a prize, booty, also hold, purchase”), past participle of prendre (“to take, to capture”), from Latin prēndere (“to take, seize”); see prehend. Compare prison, apprise, comprise, enterprise, purprise, reprisal, surprise, etc. Doublet of prise.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).