regrettable
adjective
regrettable is spelled R-E-G-R-E-T-T-A-B-L-E: 11 letters and 4 syllables. It appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 30,418th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, regrettable means “Able to be regretted, especially deserving of regret” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in regrettable?
| Letters | 11: R-E-G-R-E-T-T-A-B-L-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 1 million words; the 30,418th 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 regrettable?
Regrettable appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 30,418th 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 regrettable?
Regrettable has 4 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-regrettable.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of regrettable
- more regrettable comparative
- most regrettable superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does regrettable mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Able to be regretted, especially deserving of regret.
The officers' actions were regrettable, yes, but there's nothing to be done now but to relocate everyone to the mainland in a calm and orderly manner.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Regrettable in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense of an event, action, or state, allowing or deserving regret:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | regrettable |
| German | bedauerlich, bedauernswert |
| Portuguese | lamentável, deplorável |
| Spanish | lamentable |
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 regrettable come from?
From regret + -able.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).