tantalizing
adjective, noun, verb
tantalizing is spelled T-A-N-T-A-L-I-Z-I-N-G: 11 letters and 4 syllables. It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 41,154th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, tantalizing means “Teasing; tempting, especially that which is beyond reach” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in tantalizing?
| Letters | 11: T-A-N-T-A-L-I-Z-I-N-G |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 41,154th 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 tantalizing?
Tantalizing appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 41,154th 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 tantalizing?
- US
Tantalizing has 4 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: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Wodencafe-tantalizing.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of tantalizing
- more tantalizing comparative
- most tantalizing superlative
- tantalizings plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does tantalizing mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Teasing; tempting, especially that which is beyond reach.
noun
- 1
teasing temptation
verb
- 1
present participle and gerund of tantalize
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Tantalizing in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense teasing, desirable, but out of reach:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | alléchant |
| German | reizend, verführerisch, verlockend, aufreizend, spannend, quälend |
| Portuguese | tentador, tentadora |
| Spanish | tantalizante |
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.