rota
/ˈɹoʊtə/noun
rota is spelled R-O-T-A: 4 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 41,660th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data, counting Rota, the name). As a noun, rota means “A schedule that allocates some task, responsibility or (rarely) privilege between a set of people according to a (possibly periodic) calendar” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of rota is rotas.
How many letters and syllables are in rota?
| Letters | 4: R-O-T-A |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 41,660th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Sounds like | |
| Rhymes with | |
| Same letters |
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); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is rota?
Rota appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 41,660th most frequent word form in the list. The list counts every capitalisation together, so this includes Rota, the name.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce rota?
- UK /ˈɹəʊtə/
- US /ˈɹoʊtə/
- US [-ɾə]
Rota has 2 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-rota.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with rota
Sounds like: rotor (Wiktionary's homophone list; some hold only in some accents).
Sources: English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
What rhymes with rota?
6 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as rota from its last stressed vowel (/oʊtə/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: taro, tora.
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 rota
- rotas plural
- rocta
- rotta
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does rota mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
IrelandUKA schedule that allocates some task, responsibility or (rarely) privilege between a set of people according to a (possibly periodic) calendar.
on a rota basis
- 2
A kind of zither used in the Middle Ages in church music.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Rota in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense schedule:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| Spanish | horario con los turnos |
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 rota come from?
Borrowed from Latin rota (“wheel”). Doublet of rotor and ruote.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).