solicitous
so·lic·i·tous/səˈlɪsɪtəs/adjective
solicitous is spelled S-O-L-I-C-I-T-O-U-S: 10 letters and 4 syllables (so·lic·i·tous). It appears about once in every 8 million words in written English, the 85,266th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, solicitous means “Disposed to solicit; eager to obtain something desirable, or to avoid anything evil” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in solicitous?
| Letters | 10: S-O-L-I-C-I-T-O-U-S |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4: so·lic·i·tous |
| In writing | about once in every 8 million words; the 85,266th 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 solicitous?
Solicitous appears about once in every 8 million words in written English, the 85,266th 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 solicitous?
- /səˈlɪsɪtəs/
Solicitous has 4 syllables, split so·lic·i·tous in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-solicitous.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of solicitous
- more solicitous comparative
- most solicitous superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does solicitous mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Disposed to solicit; eager to obtain something desirable, or to avoid anything evil.
- 2
In a conscientious way, often with kindness.
solicitous about a person's health
- 3
In an eager way.
- 4
In an anxious or distressed way.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Solicitous in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| German | beflissen, dienstbeflissen, sorgsam , besorgt, fürsorglich |
| Spanish | solícito |
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 solicitous come from?
From Latin sōlicitus, sollicitus (“thoroughly disturbed, anxious”), from sollus (“whole, entire”) + cieō (“move, disturb”). By surface analysis, solicit + -ous.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).