tocsin
toc·sin/ˈtɑksɪn/noun
tocsin is spelled T-O-C-S-I-N: 6 letters and 2 syllables (toc·sin). It appears about once in every 41 million words in written English, the 196,618th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, tocsin means “An alarm or other signal sounded by a bell or bells, originally especially with reference to France” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of tocsin is tocsins.
How many letters and syllables are in tocsin?
| Letters | 6: T-O-C-S-I-N |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: toc·sin |
| In writing | about once in every 41 million words; the 196,618th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Sounds like | |
| 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); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is tocsin?
Tocsin appears about once in every 41 million words in written English, the 196,618th 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 tocsin?
- UK /ˈtɒksɪn/
- US /ˈtɑksɪn/
Tocsin has 2 syllables, split toc·sin in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Pvanp7-tocsin.wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vininn126-toxin.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with tocsin
Sounds like: toxin (Wiktionary's homophone list; some hold only in some accents).
Sources: English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
What rhymes with tocsin?
2 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as tocsin from its last stressed vowel (/ɑksɪn/):
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 tocsin
- tocsins plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does tocsin mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
An alarm or other signal sounded by a bell or bells, originally especially with reference to France.
- 2
A bell used to sound an alarm.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Tocsin in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | tocsin |
| German | Alarmsignal, Glockenalarm , Alarmglocke |
| Spanish | rebato |
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 tocsin come from?
Borrowed from Middle French, from Old French toquesain (modern tocsin), from Old Occitan tocasenh, from tocar (“strike, touch”) + senh (“bell”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).