rightful
right·ful/ˈɹaɪtfəl/adjective
rightful is spelled R-I-G-H-T-F-U-L: 8 letters and 2 syllables (right·ful). It appears 2.4 times per million words in written English, the 17,587th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, rightful means “By right; by law” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in rightful?
| Letters | 8: R-I-G-H-T-F-U-L |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: right·ful |
| In writing | 2.4 times per million words; the 17,587th 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 rightful?
Rightful appears 2.4 times per million words in written English, the 17,587th 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 rightful?
- /ˈɹaɪtfəl/
Rightful has 2 syllables, split right·ful in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-rightful.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What does rightful mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
By right; by law.
rightful owner
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Rightful in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense by right, by law:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | légitime |
| German | rechtmäßig |
| Portuguese | legítimo |
| Spanish | legítimo |
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 rightful come from?
From Middle English rightful, ryghtfull, riȝtful, from Old English *rihtfull (suggested by derivative unrihtfull (“unrightful”)), equivalent to right + -ful.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).