sightseeing
noun, verb
sightseeing is spelled S-I-G-H-T-S-E-E-I-N-G: 11 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 1.4 times per million words in written English, the 24,170th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, sightseeing means “The activity of going out looking at things; tourism” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of sightseeing is sightseeings.
How many letters and syllables are in sightseeing?
| Letters | 11: S-I-G-H-T-S-E-E-I-N-G |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.4 times per million words; the 24,170th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
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).
How common is sightseeing?
Sightseeing appears 1.4 times per million words in written English, the 24,170th 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 sightseeing?
- US
Sightseeing has 3 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: En-us-sightseeing.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with sightseeing
Also written: sight-seeing (one word or two).
Sources: English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
Forms of sightseeing
- sightseeings plural
- sight-seeing
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does sightseeing mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
The activity of going out looking at things; tourism.
Sightseeing is a frequent reason to visit San Francisco.
verb
- 1
present participle and gerund of sightsee
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Sightseeing in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense tourism:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | tourisme |
| German | Sightseeing, Tourismus, Besichtigen n von Sehenswürdigkeiten, Besichtigung f von Sehenswürdigkeiten |
| Spanish | turismo, excursionismo |
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 sightseeing come from?
From sight + seeing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).