retrench
re·trench/ɹəˈtɹɛnt͡ʃ/verb
retrench is spelled R-E-T-R-E-N-C-H: 8 letters and 2 syllables (re·trench). It appears about once in every 15 million words in written English, the 117,098th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, retrench means “To cut down or reduce” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in retrench?
| Letters | 8: R-E-T-R-E-N-C-H |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: re·trench |
| In writing | about once in every 15 million words; the 117,098th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with | |
| Same letters |
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); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is retrench?
Retrench appears about once in every 15 million words in written English, the 117,098th 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 retrench?
- UK /ɹɪˈtɹɛnt͡ʃ/
- US /ɹəˈtɹɛnt͡ʃ/
- US /ɹiˈtɹɛnt͡ʃ/
Retrench has 2 syllables, split re·trench in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-au-retrench.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with retrench?
5 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as retrench from its last stressed vowel (/ɛntʃ/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: trencher.
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 retrench
- retrenches present, singular, he/she/it
- retrenching participle, present
- retrenched participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does retrench mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To cut down or reduce.
- 2
To terminate the employment of a worker to reduce the size of a workforce; to make redundant.
- 3
To live less expensively; to economize.
- 4
To confine; to limit; to restrict.
- 5
To furnish with a retrenchment (a defensive work within a fortification).
to retrench bastions
- 6
To abridge; to curtail.
- 7
To take up a new defensive position.
We must retrench and try to hold on long enough for products in development to reach the market or we will be out of business.
- 8
To dig or redig a trench where one already exists.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).