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PlainSpell

under

un·derUK /ˈʌndə/preposition, adverb, adjective, noun

under is spelled U-N-D-E-R: 5 letters and 2 syllables (un·der). It appears 537 times per million words in written English, the 183rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a preposition, under means “Beneath; below; at or to the bottom of, or the area covered or surmounted by” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).

How many letters and syllables are in under?

Letters5: U-N-D-E-R
Syllables2: un·der
In writing537 times per million words; the 183rd most frequent word form
Wrong spellings searchednone 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 under?

Under appears 537 times per million words in written English, the 183rd 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 under?

  • UK /ˈʌndə/
  • /ˈʊndə/
  • /ˈʊndɐ/

Under has 2 syllables, split un·der in writing.

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

What rhymes with under?

3 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as under from its last stressed vowel (/ʌndə/, British pronunciation):

Spelled with the same letters in another order: ruden.

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 under

  • more under comparative
  • most under superlative
  • unders plural

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

What does under mean?

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

preposition

  1. 1

    Beneath; below; at or to the bottom of, or the area covered or surmounted by.

    We found some shade under a tree.

  2. 2

    Below the surface of.

  3. 3

    From one side of to the other, passing beneath.

    I crawled under the fence.

  4. 4

    Less than.

    Interest rates are now under 1%.

  5. 5

    Subject to.

    We were constantly under bombardment.

  6. 6

    Subordinate to; subject to the control of; in accordance with; in compliance with.

    He served in World War II under General Omar Bradley.

  7. 7

    Within the category, classification or heading of.

    File this under "i" for "ignore".

  8. 8

    In the face of; in response to (some attacking force).

    to collapse under stress; to give in under interrogation

adverb

  1. 1

    In or to a lower or subordinate position, or a position beneath or below something, physically or figuratively.

    pulled under by the currents

  2. 2

    So as to pass beneath something.

    There's quite a gap, so you may be able to sneak under.

  3. 3

    Less than what is necessary to be adequate or suitable; insufficient.

    The plants were underwatered.

  4. 4

    informalIn or into an unconscious state.

    It took the hypnotist several minutes to make his subject go under.

  5. 5

    Down to defeat, ruin, or death.

    The COVID-19 epidemic and shutdown took some businesses under.

adjective

  1. 1

    Lower; beneath something.

    This treatment protects the under portion of the car from rust.

  2. 2

    In a state of subordination, submission or defeat.

    The army could not keep the people under.

  3. 3

    colloquialUnder anesthesia, especially general anesthesia; sedated.

    Ensure the patient is sufficiently under.

  4. 4

    informalHaving a particular property that is low, especially so as to be insufficient or lacking in a particular respect.

    This chicken is a bit under.

noun

  1. 1

    The amount by which an actual total is less than the expected or required amount.

  2. 2

    informalSomething having a particular property that is low or too low.

    I went fishing but caught nothing but unders.

  3. 3

    A bet that a particular sporting statistic, such as points scored in a game, will be below a certain stated value.

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

How do you abbreviate under?

Wiktionary records one abbreviation of under: U.

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

Under in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese

LanguageWords
Frenchsous (at a lower level than), moins de (less than), dessous (In a way lower or less than), moins (In a way inferior to), sous- (under (in any sense): insufficient…)
Germanunter (at a lower level than), weniger als (less than), unter- (under (in any sense): insufficient…)
Portuguesedebaixo, sob (at a lower level than), menos que/de (less than), sub- (under (in any sense): insufficient…), embaixo de (beneath the surface of)
Spanishbajo, debajo de, so (at a lower level than), sub-, infra-, so- (under (in any sense): insufficient…)

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 under come from?

From Middle English under, from Old English under, from Proto-West Germanic *undar, from Proto-Germanic *under, from a merger of Proto-Indo-European *(H)n̥dʰér (“under”) and *h₁entér (“inside”).

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

What to look up after under