stage
/steɪd͡ʒ/noun, verb
stage is spelled S-T-A-G-E: 5 letters and one syllable. It appears 126 times per million words in written English, the 831st most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, stage means “A phase” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of stage is stages.
How many letters and syllables are in stage?
| Letters | 5: S-T-A-G-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 126 times per million words; the 831st 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 stage?
Stage appears 126 times per million words in written English, the 831st 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 stage?
- /steɪd͡ʒ/
As a noun (“An unpaid internship in a restaurant where a cook or chef…”): /stɑːʒ/.
Stage has one syllable (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-stage.ogg, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Back_ache-stage.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of stage
- stages plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- staging participle, present
- staged participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does stage mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A phase.
He is in the recovery stage of his illness.
- 2
One of the portions of a device (such as a rocket or thermonuclear weapon) which are used or activated in a particular order, one after another.
The first stage of the launcher burned out and separated after successfully boosting the payload onto a suborbital trajectory, but the engine of the upper stage failed to ignite to place the satellite into orbit.
- 3
A platform; a surface, generally elevated, upon which show performances or other public events are given.
The band returned to the stage to play an encore.
- 4
A floor or storey of a house.
- 5
A floor elevated for the convenience of mechanical work, etc.; scaffolding; staging.
- 6
A platform, often floating, serving as a kind of wharf.
- 7
A stagecoach, an enclosed horsedrawn carriage used to carry passengers; the service that such coaches provide; a company that operates such service.
The stage pulled into town carrying the payroll for the mill and three ladies.
- 8
datedA place of rest on a regularly travelled road; a station, way station; a place appointed for a relay of horses.
- 9
An unpaid internship in a restaurant where a cook or chef is exposed to new culinary techniques.
verb
- 1
To produce on a stage, to perform a play.
The local theater group will stage "Pride and Prejudice".
- 2
To arrange in a manner intended to deceive.
The salesman's demonstration of the new cleanser was staged to make it appear highly effective.
- 3
To furnish and decorate (a property) to make it more appealing to potential buyers.
to stage a house or flat
- 4
To orchestrate; to carry out.
The workers staged a strike.
- 5
To place in position to prepare for use.
We staged the cars to be ready for the start, then waited for the starter to drop the flag.
- 6
To determine what stage (a disease, etc.) has progressed to
- 7
To jettison a spent stage of a multistage rocket or other launch vehicle and light the engine(s) of the stage above it.
In Kerbal Space Program, you stage away used-up parts of your rocket by hitting the spacebar.
- 8
CanadaUSTo work an internship, usually as a chef or waiter.
- 9
To work as an unpaid intern in a restaurant.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
How do you abbreviate stage?
Wiktionary records one abbreviation of stage: stge.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Stage in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | étape, phase , scène , calèche , platine , étage |
| German | Stufe, Etappe , Bühne, Brettl , inszenieren |
| Portuguese | fase, etapa, estágio , palco , encenar , forjar |
| Spanish | etapa, estadio , escenario, escena, tablas, tablado |
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 stage come from?
From Middle English stage, from Old French estage (“dwelling, residence; position, situation, condition”), from Old French ester (“to be standing, be located”). Cognate with Old English stæþþan (“to make staid, stay”), Old Norse steðja (“to place, provide, confirm, allow”), Old English stede (“state, status, standing, place, station, site”). More at stead. Doublet of étage.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).