underling
/ˈʌndɚlɪŋ/noun
underling is spelled U-N-D-E-R-L-I-N-G: 9 letters and 3 syllables. It appears about once in every 6 million words in written English, the 71,529th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, underling means “A subordinate, or person of lesser rank or authority” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of underling is underlings.
How many letters and syllables are in underling?
| Letters | 9: U-N-D-E-R-L-I-N-G |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 6 million words; the 71,529th 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 underling?
Underling appears about once in every 6 million words in written English, the 71,529th 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 underling?
- UK /ˈʌndəlɪŋ/
- US /ˈʌndɚlɪŋ/
- Australia /ˈɐndəlɪŋ/
Underling has 3 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: En-us-underling.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of underling
- underlings plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does underling mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A subordinate, or person of lesser rank or authority.
- 2
A low, wretched person.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Underling in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense a subordinate, or person of lesser rank or authority:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | subordonné, sous-fifre |
| German | Untergebener, Untergebene, Untertan, Unterling |
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 underling come from?
From Middle English underling, from Old English underling. By surface analysis, under + -ling.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).