valet
/ˈvæleɪ/noun, verb
valet is spelled V-A-L-E-T: 5 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 1.5 times per million words in written English, the 23,253rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, valet means “A man's personal male attendant, responsible for his clothes and appearance” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of valet is valets.
How many letters and syllables are in valet?
| Letters | 5: V-A-L-E-T |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.5 times per million words; the 23,253rd 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 valet?
Valet appears 1.5 times per million words in written English, the 23,253rd 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 valet?
- UK /ˈvæleɪ/
- UK /ˈvælɪt/
- US /ˈvæleɪ/
Valet has 2 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-valet.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of valet
- valets plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- valeting participle, present
- valeted participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does valet mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A man's personal male attendant, responsible for his clothes and appearance.
- 2
A hotel employee performing such duties for guests.
- 3
A female performer in professional wrestling, acting as either a manager or personal chaperone; often used to attract and titillate male members of the audience.
- 4
A female chaperone who accompanies a man, and is usually not married to him.
- 5
USA person employed to clean or park cars.
- 6
A person employed to assist the jockey and trainer at a racecourse.
- 7
A wooden stand on which to hold clothes and accessories in preparation for dressing.
- 8
A kind of goad or stick with an iron point.
verb
- 1
To serve (someone) as a valet.
- 2
IrelandUKTo clean and service (a car), as a valet does.
- 3
USTo leave (a car) with a valet to park it.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Valet in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | valet, valet de chambre, majordome , chaperon, duègne |
| German | Kammerdiener, Diener, Putzer, Leibdiener, Hausdiener, Dienstbote |
| Portuguese | mordomo , valet, valete m or f arrumador, manobrista |
| Spanish | edecán , aparcacoches , mánager , galán de noche |
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 valet come from?
Borrowed from Middle French valet, from Old French vaslet, from Medieval Latin *vassellittus, diminutive of Late Latin vassallus (“manservant, domestic, retainer”), from vassus (“servant”), from Gaulish *wassos (“young man, squire”), from Proto-Celtic *wastos (“servant”) (compare Old Irish foss and Welsh gwas). Doublet of varlet.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).