stillness
still·ness/ˈstɪlnəs/noun
stillness is spelled S-T-I-L-L-N-E-S-S: 9 letters and 2 syllables (still·ness). It appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 29,649th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, stillness means “The quality or state of being still” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of stillness is stillnesses.
How many letters and syllables are in stillness?
| Letters | 9: S-T-I-L-L-N-E-S-S |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: still·ness |
| In writing | about once in every 1 million words; the 29,649th 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 stillness?
Stillness appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 29,649th 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 stillness?
- /ˈstɪlnəs/
Stillness has 2 syllables, split still·ness in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-AnotherFriendlyHuman-stillness.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of stillness
- stillnesses plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does stillness mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
The quality or state of being still.
- 2
Habitual silence or quiet; taciturnity.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Stillness in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense quality or state of being still:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | calme, immobilité |
| German | Stille |
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 stillness come from?
From Middle English stilnesse, from Old English stilnes (“stillness, quiet; absence of noise or disturbance, release, relaxation; silence, abstention from speech; absence of disturbance or molestation, tranquility, peace, security; that which appeases”), equivalent to still + -ness.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).