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PlainSpell

trigger

trig·gerUK /ˈtɹɪɡə/noun, verb, adjective

trigger is spelled T-R-I-G-G-E-R: 7 letters and 2 syllables (trig·ger). It appears 18 times per million words in written English, the 4,667th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, trigger means “A finger-operated lever used to fire a gun” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of trigger is triggers.

How many letters and syllables are in trigger?

Letters7: T-R-I-G-G-E-R
Syllables2: trig·ger
In writing18 times per million words; the 4,667th most frequent word form
Wrong spellings searchednone measured in 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); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.

How common is trigger?

Trigger appears 18 times per million words in written English, the 4,667th 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 trigger?

  • UK /ˈtɹɪɡə/
  • UK [ˈtɹ̝̊ʷɪɡə]
  • UK [ˈt̠ɹ̠̊˔ʷɪɡə]

Trigger has 2 syllables, split trig·ger in writing.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-trigger.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).

What rhymes with trigger?

One word on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as trigger from its last stressed vowel (/ɪɡə/, British pronunciation):

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 trigger

  • triggers plural, present, singular, he/she/it
  • tricker
  • triggering participle, present
  • triggered participle, past

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What does trigger mean?

The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).

noun

  1. 1

    A finger-operated lever used to fire a gun.

    Just pull the trigger.

  2. 2

    A similar device used to activate any mechanism.

  3. 3

    An event that initiates others, or incites a response.

    Sleeping in an unfamiliar room can be a trigger for sleepwalking.

  4. 4

    Something that triggers an ASMR response.

  5. 5

    A concept or image that upsets somebody by sparking a negative emotional response.

    emotional trigger

  6. 6

    An event, experience or other stimulus that initiates a traumatic memory or a strong reaction in a person.

  7. 7

    An electronic transducer allowing a drum, cymbal, etc. to control an electronic drum unit or similar device.

  8. 8

    A device that manually lengthens (or sometimes shortens) the slide or tubing of a brass instrument, allowing the pitch range to be altered while playing.

verb

  1. 1

    To fire (a weapon); to set off or trip (a mechanism or function of a device).

  2. 2

    To cause, to precipitate, to bring (something) about in response or as a result.

    The controversial article triggered a deluge of angry letters from readers.

  3. 3

    To spark a response, especially a negative emotional response, in (a person).

    This story contains a rape scene and may be triggering for rape victims.

  4. 4

    To activate; to become active.

adjective

  1. 1

    comparative form of trig: more trig (a form of trig)

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

Trigger in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese

LanguageWords
Frenchdétente, gâchette (finger-operated lever used to fire a gun), actionneur (similar device used to activate any mechanism), activateur (event that initiates others, or incites a…), déclencher (to initiate something), être évocateur ; déchaîner (to spark a response, especially a negative…)
GermanAbzug (finger-operated lever used to fire a gun), Auslöser (similar device used to activate any mechanism), auslösen, triggern (to initiate something)
Portuguesegatilho (finger-operated lever used to fire a gun), ativar, desencadear (to initiate something), estopim (event that initiates others), apertar o gatilho, atirar (to fire a weapon)
Spanishgatillo, perrillo, disparador, disparadero (finger-operated lever used to fire a gun), desencadenante (event that initiates others, or incites a…), gatillar (to fire a weapon)

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 trigger come from?

Originally tricker, from Dutch trekker (“pull”, noun, as in drawer-pull, bell-pull), from Dutch trekken (“to drag, draw, pull”).

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What to look up after trigger