specter
/ˈspɛktɚ/noun
specter is spelled S-P-E-C-T-E-R: 7 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 1.2 times per million words in written English, the 26,092nd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, specter means “A ghostly apparition, a phantom” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of specter is specters.
How many letters and syllables are in specter?
| Letters | 7: S-P-E-C-T-E-R |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.2 times per million words; the 26,092nd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with | |
| Same letters |
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); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is specter?
Specter 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 specter?
- US /ˈspɛktɚ/
- UK /ˈspɛktə/
Specter 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-specter.ogg, En-au-specter.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with specter?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as specter from its last stressed vowel (/ɛktəɹ/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: respect, sceptre.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of specter
- specters plural
- spectre
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does specter mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
USA ghostly apparition, a phantom.
A specter haunted the cemetery at the old Vasquez manor.
- 2
USA threatening mental image; an unpleasant prospect
The specter of an election-vote recount is this year's political bogeyman.
- 3
USAny of certain species of dragonfly of the genus Boyeria, family Aeshnidae.
- 4
USAny of various species of Asian danaid butterflies of the genus Idea, family Nymphalidae.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Specter in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | spectre |
| German | Gespenst, Spuk , Schreckgespenst |
| Portuguese | espectro, aparição |
| Spanish | espectro, pora, jugarreta , imagen |
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 specter come from?
From Middle French spectre, from Latin spectrum (“appearance, apparition”). Doublet of spectrum.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).