sentry
sen·try/ˈsɛn.tɹi/noun
sentry is spelled S-E-N-T-R-Y: 6 letters and 2 syllables (sen·try). It appears 1.2 times per million words in written English, the 26,092nd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, sentry means “A guard, particularly on duty at the entrance to a military base” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of sentry is sentries.
How many letters and syllables are in sentry?
| Letters | 6: S-E-N-T-R-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: sen·try |
| In writing | 1.2 times per million words; the 26,092nd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Pairs people 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); Bing searches in the United States: the average month from September 2025 to August 2026 (Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, read September 30, 2026).
How common is sentry?
Sentry appears 1.2 times per million words in written English, the 26,092nd 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 sentry?
- /ˈsɛn.tɹi/
- [ˈsɛn.tɹ̝̊ɪi̯] ~ [ˈsɛn.t̠ɹ̠̊˔ɪi̯]
- /ˈsɪn.tɹi/
Sentry has 2 syllables, split sen·try in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Naomi_Persephone_Amethyst_(NaomiAmethyst)-sentry.wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-sentry.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with sentry
Word pairs people search, with the monthly searches for “a vs b” (G: Google, B: Bing, United States).
Sources: Google and Bing searches (September 2025 to August 2026, through DataForSEO); English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
Forms of sentry
- sentries plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does sentry mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A guard, particularly on duty at the entrance to a military base.
- 2
Sentry duty; time spent being a sentry.
- 3
A form of drag to be towed underwater, which on striking bottom is upset and rises to the surface.
- 4
A watchtower.
- 5
An animal like a marmot tasked with alerting the pack to danger.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Sentry in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | sentinelle , tourelle |
| German | Wache, Wachposten, Schildwache , Wachturm |
| Portuguese | sentinela |
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 sentry come from?
From earlier sentrie, sentery, of uncertain origin. Perhaps an alteration of sentinel or sanctuary; or perhaps from Old French senteret (“a path”), diminutive of sentier, from Medieval Latin semitarius (“a path”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).