pyrophoric
/ˌpaɪ.ɹəʊˈfɔː.ɹɪk/adjective
pyrophoric is spelled P-Y-R-O-P-H-O-R-I-C: 10 letters. It appears about once in every 23 million words in written English, the 146,811th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, pyrophoric means “Spontaneously igniting in air, especially when in a finely divided state” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in pyrophoric?
| Letters | 10: P-Y-R-O-P-H-O-R-I-C |
|---|---|
| In writing | about once in every 23 million words; the 146,811th 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 pyrophoric?
Pyrophoric appears about once in every 23 million words in written English, the 146,811th 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 pyrophoric?
- /ˌpaɪ.ɹəʊˈfɔː.ɹɪk/
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-pyrophoric.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What does pyrophoric mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Spontaneously igniting in air, especially when in a finely divided state.
- 2
Producing sparks, especially by friction.
- 3
Able to oxidize with exposure to atmospheric oxygen at normal temperatures.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Pyrophoric in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense spontaneously igniting in air:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | pyrophorique |
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 pyrophoric come from?
From Ancient Greek πυροφόρος (purophóros, “fire-bearing”) + -ic. Analyzable as pyro- + -phore + -ic.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).