sonnet
/ˈsɒnɪt/noun, verb
sonnet is spelled S-O-N-N-E-T: 6 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 30,418th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, sonnet means “A fixed verse form of Italian origin consisting of fourteen lines that are typically five-foot iambics and rhyme according to one of a few prescribed…” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of sonnet is sonnets.
How many letters and syllables are in sonnet?
| Letters | 6: S-O-N-N-E-T |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 1 million words; the 30,418th 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 sonnet?
Sonnet appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 30,418th 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 sonnet?
- /ˈsɒnɪt/
- /ˈsʌnɪt/
Sonnet 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: En-us-sonnet.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of sonnet
- sonnets plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- sonneting participle, present
- sonnetting participle, present
- sonneted participle, past
- sonnetted participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does sonnet mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A fixed verse form of Italian origin consisting of fourteen lines that are typically five-foot iambics and rhyme according to one of a few prescribed schemes.
verb
- 1
To compose sonnets.
- 2
To celebrate in sonnets; to write a sonnet about.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Sonnet in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense verse form consisting of fourteen lines:
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 sonnet come from?
Borrowed from Middle French sonnet, from Italian sonetto, from Old Occitan sonet (“a song”), diminutive of son (“song, sound”), from Latin sonus (“sound”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).