summer
sum·mer/ˈsʌmɚ/noun, verb
summer is spelled S-U-M-M-E-R: 6 letters and 2 syllables (sum·mer). It appears 170 times per million words in written English, the 591st most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data, counting Summer, the name). As a noun, summer means “One of four seasons, traditionally the second, marked by the longest and typically hottest days of the year due to the inclination of the Earth and…” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of summer is summers.
How many letters and syllables are in summer?
| Letters | 6: S-U-M-M-E-R |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: sum·mer |
| In writing | 170 times per million words; the 591st most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Pairs people search | |
| Rhymes with |
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); Bing searches in the United States: the average month from September 2025 to August 2026 (Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, read September 30, 2026); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is summer?
Summer appears 170 times per million words in written English, the 591st most frequent word form in the list. The list counts every capitalisation together, so this includes Summer, the name.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce summer?
- UK /ˈsʌmə/
- UK [ˈsʌmə]
- US /ˈsʌmɚ/
Summer has 2 syllables, split sum·mer in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-summer.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with summer
Word pairs people search, with the monthly searches for “a vs b” (G: Google, B: Bing, United States).
Also written: sommer.
Sources: Google and Bing searches (September 2025 to August 2026, through DataForSEO); English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
What rhymes with summer?
5 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as summer from its last stressed vowel (/ʌməɹ/):
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 summer
- summers plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- summering participle, present
- summered participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does summer mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
One of four seasons, traditionally the second, marked by the longest and typically hottest days of the year due to the inclination of the Earth and thermal lag. Typically regarded as spanning either the period between the summer solstice to the autumnal equinox, or the months of June, July, and August in the Northern Hemisphere and the months of December, January and February in the Southern Hemis
the heat of summer
- 2
year; used to give the age of a person, usually a young one.
He was barely eighteen summers old.
- 3
Most flourishing, happy, or beautiful period; golden age, prime.
- 4
Someone with light, pinkish skin that has a blue undertone, light hair and eyes, seen as best suited to certain colors of clothing.
- 5
A horizontal beam supporting a building.
- 6
obsoleteA pack-horse.
- 7
A person who sums.
- 8
A machine or algorithm that sums.
verb
- 1
To spend the summer, as in a particular place on holiday.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Summer in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | été , estiver, passer l'été |
| German | Sommer, Sommerzeit |
| Portuguese | verão, estio , veranear |
| Spanish | verano, estío , veranear |
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 summer come from?
From Middle English somer, sumer, from Old English sumor m, from Proto-West Germanic *sumar m, from Proto-Germanic *sumaraz m, derived from Proto-Indo-European *semh₂- (“summer”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).