protracted
/pɹoʊˈtɹæk.tɪd/adjective, verb
protracted is spelled P-R-O-T-R-A-C-T-E-D: 10 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 1.8 times per million words in written English, the 20,629th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, protracted means “Lasting for a long time or longer than expected or usual” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in protracted?
| Letters | 10: P-R-O-T-R-A-C-T-E-D |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.8 times per million words; the 20,629th 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 protracted?
Protracted appears 1.8 times per million words in written English, the 20,629th 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 protracted?
- UK /pɹəˈtɹæk.tɪd/
- US /pɹoʊˈtɹæk.tɪd/
- US /pɹəˈtɹæk.tɪd/
Protracted has 3 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-protracted.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with protracted?
One word on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as protracted from its last stressed vowel (/æktɪd/):
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 protracted
- more protracted comparative
- most protracted superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does protracted mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Lasting for a long time or longer than expected or usual.
a protracted and bitter dispute
verb
- 1
simple past and past participle of protract
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Protracted in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense lasting for a long time or longer than expected or usual:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| German | langwierig, langdauernd, langandauernd, anhaltend, sich hinziehend, langwährend |
| Spanish | protraído |
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.