sanitary
san·i·ta·ry/ˈsænɪˌtɛɹi/adjective, noun
sanitary is spelled S-A-N-I-T-A-R-Y: 8 letters and 4 syllables (san·i·ta·ry). It appears 2.3 times per million words in written English, the 17,813th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, sanitary means “Of or relating to health” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in sanitary?
| Letters | 8: S-A-N-I-T-A-R-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4: san·i·ta·ry |
| In writing | 2.3 times per million words; the 17,813th 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 sanitary?
Sanitary appears 2.3 times per million words in written English, the 17,813th 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 sanitary?
- UK /ˈsænɪt(ə)ɹi/
- US /ˈsænɪˌtɛɹi/
- US [ˈsɛənɪˌtɛɹi]
Sanitary has 4 syllables, split san·i·ta·ry in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-sanitary.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of sanitary
- more sanitary comparative
- most sanitary superlative
- sanitaries plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does sanitary mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Of or relating to health.
- 2
Clean and free from pathogens; hygienic.
noun
- 1
Sanitary towel.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Sanitary in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
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 sanitary come from?
19th century, borrowed from French sanitaire, formed from Latin sanitas (“health”). Analysable as sanity + -ary.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).