unassuming
/ʌnəˈsjuːmɪŋ/adjective
unassuming is spelled U-N-A-S-S-U-M-I-N-G: 10 letters and 4 syllables. It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 36,176th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, unassuming means “Modest and having no pretensions or ostentation” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in unassuming?
| Letters | 10: U-N-A-S-S-U-M-I-N-G |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 36,176th 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 unassuming?
Unassuming appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 36,176th 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 unassuming?
- /ʌnəˈsjuːmɪŋ/
- /ʌnəˈsuːmɪŋ/
Unassuming 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)-Sapaa-unassuming.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of unassuming
- more unassuming comparative
- most unassuming superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does unassuming mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Modest and having no pretensions or ostentation.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Unassuming in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense modest with no pretensions or ostentation:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | sans prétention |
| German | bescheiden, anspruchslos, unaufdringlich, unprätentiös |
| Spanish | sencillo, modesto, sin pretensiones, non asumiente |
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 unassuming come from?
From un- + assuming.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).