utmost
ut·most/ˈʌtmoʊ̯st/adjective, noun
utmost is spelled U-T-M-O-S-T: 6 letters and 2 syllables (ut·most). It appears 4.1 times per million words in written English, the 12,764th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). People search “upmost vs utmost” about 8,100 times a month (Google, United States). As an adjective, utmost means “The most extreme; greatest, ultimate” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in utmost?
| Letters | 6: U-T-M-O-S-T |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: ut·most |
| In writing | 4.1 times per million words; the 12,764th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Pairs people search |
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); Bing searches in the United States: the average month from September 2025 to August 2026 (Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, read September 30, 2026).
How common is utmost?
Utmost appears 4.1 times per million words in written English, the 12,764th 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 utmost?
- UK /ˈʌtməʊ̯st/
- UK /ˈʌtməst/
- US /ˈʌtmoʊ̯st/
Utmost has 2 syllables, split ut·most in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-utmost.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with utmost
Word pairs people search, with the monthly searches for “a vs b” (G: Google, B: Bing, United States).
Sources: Google and Bing searches (September 2025 to August 2026, through DataForSEO); English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
Forms of utmost
- uttermost
- utmosts plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does utmost mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
The most extreme; greatest, ultimate.
the utmost assiduity
- 2
superlative form of utter: most utter; situated at the most distant limit; farthest, outermost.
the utmost limits of the land
noun
- 1
The greatest possible capability, extent, or quantity; maximum.
at the utmost to the utmost
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Utmost in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | extrême , plus grand, suprême , maximum |
| German | äußerst , höchst , Äußerstes, Möglichstes |
| Portuguese | derradeiro, extremo |
| Spanish | extremo , descollante, extremado, sobresaliente, sumo , máximo |
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 utmost come from?
From Middle English utmost, utemest [and other forms], from Old English ūtmest, ūtemest [and other forms], from ūt, ūte (“out; outdoors, outside”) + -mest (suffix meaning ‘furthest’, used to form superlatives of some adjectives) (and conflated with most). Ūt is derived from Proto-Germanic *ūt (“out, outward”), from Proto-Indo-European *úd (“out, outward”). Equivalent to out + -most.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).