umber
um·ber/ˈʌmbɚ/noun, adjective, verb
umber is spelled U-M-B-E-R: 5 letters and 2 syllables (um·ber). It appears about once in every 4 million words in written English, the 60,074th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, umber means “A brown clay, somewhat darker than ochre, which contains iron and manganese oxides” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of umber is umbers.
How many letters and syllables are in umber?
| Letters | 5: U-M-B-E-R |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: um·ber |
| In writing | about once in every 4 million words; the 60,074th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with | |
| Same letters |
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 umber?
Umber appears about once in every 4 million words in written English, the 60,074th 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 umber?
- UK /ˈʌmbə/
- US /ˈʌmbɚ/
Umber has 2 syllables, split um·ber in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-umber.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with umber?
3 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as umber from its last stressed vowel (/ʌmbəɹ/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: brume.
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 umber
- umbers plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- umbre
- umbering participle, present
- umbered participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does umber mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A brown clay, somewhat darker than ochre, which contains iron and manganese oxides.
They instructed the upholsterer to do the sofa in cinnamon and the ottoman in umber.
- 2
Alternative form of umbrere.
- 3
A grayling.
- 4
A dusky brown African wading bird (Scopus umbretta) allied to the shoebill and herons; a hamerkop.
adjective
- 1
Of a reddish brown colour, like that of the pigment.
verb
- 1
To give a reddish-brown colour to.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Umber in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense colour:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | terre d'ombre |
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 umber come from?
From Middle French ombre (“umber”), from terre d'ombre (“dark ochre”), from Old French umbre (“shade, shadow”), from Latin umbra. Doublet of umbra.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).