utility
/juːˈtɪlɪti/noun, adjective
utility is spelled U-T-I-L-I-T-Y: 7 letters and 4 syllables. It appears 19 times per million words in written English, the 4,521st most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, utility means “The state or condition of being useful; usefulness” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of utility is utilities.
How many letters and syllables are in utility?
| Letters | 7: U-T-I-L-I-T-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 19 times per million words; the 4,521st most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
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); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is utility?
Utility appears 19 times per million words in written English, the 4,521st 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 utility?
- UK /juːˈtɪlɪti/
- UK /jʊ-/
- UK /jə-/
Utility 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)-Vealhurl-utility.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with utility?
9 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as utility from its last stressed vowel (/ɪlɪti/, British pronunciation):
- deniability
- debility
- deductibility
- deliverability
- decidability
- deformability
- defensibility
- degradability
- definability
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 utility
- utilities plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does utility mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
The state or condition of being useful; usefulness.
- 2
Something that is useful.
- 3
The ability of a commodity to satisfy needs or wants; the satisfaction experienced by the consumer of that commodity.
- 4
Well-being, satisfaction, pleasure, or happiness.
- 5
A commodity or service provided on a continuous basis by a physical infrastructure network, such as electricity, water supply or sewerage.
The complex includes the usual utilities (gas and electricity) and amenities like wifi and a gym (toilets with toiletries).
- 6
A natural or legal monopoly distributer of such a utility; or, the securities of such a provider.
- 7
A software program other than a game; one that is useful or creative rather than merely entertaining.
a graphics utility; a music utility
- 8
A software program designed to perform a single task or a small range of tasks, often to help manage and tune computer hardware, an operating system, or application software.
Holonyms: app, application, program
adjective
- 1
Having to do with, or owned by, a service provider.
utility line; utility bill
- 2
containing or intended for any of a building’s often-utility-related commodity transport, such as pipes or wires, or converting equipment, such as furnaces, water tanks or heaters, circuit breakers, central air conditioning units, laundry facilities, etc.
utility room; utility corridor
- 3
Functional rather than attractive.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
How do you abbreviate utility?
Wiktionary records 3 abbreviations of utility: LCU, Util., util..
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Utility in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | utilité , utilitaire |
| German | Nützlichkeit , Grundversorgung |
| Portuguese | utilidade |
| Spanish | utilidad , utíliti, servicio público, utilidad pública , proveedor de servicios |
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 utility come from?
From Middle English utilite, from Old French utilite, utilitet (“usefulness”), from Latin ūtilitās, from uti (“to use”). By surface analysis, utile + -ity.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).