tiller
/ˈtɪlɚ/noun, verb
tiller is spelled T-I-L-L-E-R: 6 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 30,789th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, tiller means “A person who tills; a farmer” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of tiller is tillers.
How many letters and syllables are in tiller?
| Letters | 6: T-I-L-L-E-R |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 1 million words; the 30,789th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
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 tiller?
Tiller appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 30,789th 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 tiller?
- UK /ˈtɪlə/
- US /ˈtɪlɚ/
Tiller 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: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-tiller.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with tiller?
8 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as tiller from its last stressed vowel (/ɪləɹ/):
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 tiller
- tillers plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- tillow
- tillering participle, present
- tillered participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does tiller mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A person who tills; a farmer.
- 2
A machine that mechanically tills the soil.
- 3
obsoleteA young tree.
- 4
A shoot of a plant which springs from the root or bottom of the original stalk; a sapling; a sucker.
- 5
The stock; a beam on a crossbow carved to fit the arrow, or the point of balance in a longbow.
- 6
A bar of iron or wood connected with the rudderhead and leadline, usually forward, in which the rudder is moved as desired by the tiller (FM 55-501).
- 7
The handle of the rudder which the helmsman holds to steer the boat, a piece of wood or metal extending forward from the rudder over or through the transom. Generally attached at the top of the rudder.
- 8
A steering wheel, usually mounted on the lower portion of the captain's control column, which is used to steer the aircraft's nosewheel or tailwheel to provide steering during taxi.
- 9
A handle; a stalk.
- 10
The rear-wheel steering control, aboard a tiller truck.
- 11
UKobsoleteA small drawer; a till.
verb
- 1
To produce new shoots from the root or from around the bottom of the original stalk; stool.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Tiller in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | fermier, paysan , excavatrice , barre |
| Spanish | campesino , arado cincel, cultivador, motoarado , caña del timón |
| German | Fräse, Motorpflug , Pinne, Helmstock |
| Portuguese | cana do leme |
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 tiller come from?
From Middle English tilier; equivalent to till + -er.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).