publish
pub·lish/ˈpʌblɪʃ/verb
publish is spelled P-U-B-L-I-S-H: 7 letters and 2 syllables (pub·lish). It appears 13 times per million words in written English, the 6,047th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, publish means “To issue (something, such as printed work) for distribution and/or sale” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in publish?
| Letters | 7: P-U-B-L-I-S-H |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: pub·lish |
| In writing | 13 times per million words; the 6,047th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
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).
How common is publish?
Publish appears 13 times per million words in written English, the 6,047th 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 publish?
- /ˈpʌblɪʃ/
- /ˈpʊblɪʃ/
Publish has 2 syllables, split pub·lish in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-publish.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of publish
- publishes present, singular, he/she/it
- publishing participle, present
- published participle, past, singular, he/she/it, plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does publish mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To issue (something, such as printed work) for distribution and/or sale.
The Times published the investigative piece about the governor both in print and online.
- 2
To announce to the public.
The Secretary of Health and Human Services published a press release on May 22, 2013.
- 3
To issue the work of (an author).
Grove Press published many avant-garde authors.
- 4
To disseminate (a message) publicly via a newsgroup, forum, blog, etc.
- 5
To issue a medium (e.g. publication).
Major city papers still publish daily.
- 6
To have one's work accepted for a publication.
She needs to publish in order to get tenure.
- 7
To be made available in a printed publication or other medium.
The article first published online, then in print the next day.
- 8
To make (information such as an event) available to components that wish to be notified (subscribers).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Publish in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | publier , éditer |
| German | herausgeben, publizieren, veröffentlichen |
| Portuguese | publicar , anunciar |
| Spanish | publicar , divulgar, placear |
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 publish come from?
From Middle English publicen (by analogy with banish, finish), from Old French publier, from Latin publicare (“to make public, show or tell to the people, make known, declare, also (and earlier) confiscate for public use”), from publicus (“pertaining to the people, public”); see public.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).