purposeful
/ˈpɝ.pəs.fəl/adjective
purposeful is spelled P-U-R-P-O-S-E-F-U-L: 10 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 1.2 times per million words in written English, the 26,420th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, purposeful means “Having purpose: having intention or meaning; intentional” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in purposeful?
| Letters | 10: P-U-R-P-O-S-E-F-U-L |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.2 times per million words; the 26,420th 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 purposeful?
Purposeful appears 1.2 times per million words in written English, the 26,420th 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 purposeful?
- UK /ˈpɜː.pəs.fəl/
- US /ˈpɝ.pəs.fəl/
Purposeful 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-purposeful.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of purposeful
- more purposeful comparative
- most purposeful superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does purposeful mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Having purpose: having intention or meaning; intentional.
- 2
Having a purpose in mind; resolute; determined, full of determination.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Purposeful in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| Spanish | propositivo |
| German | entschlossen, zielgerichtet |
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 purposeful come from?
From purpose + -ful.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).