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variable

[ˈvæɹ.i.ə.bl̩]adjective, noun

variable is spelled V-A-R-I-A-B-L-E: 8 letters and 4 syllables. It appears 13 times per million words in written English, the 5,878th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, variable means “Able to vary or be varied” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).

How many letters and syllables are in variable?

Letters8: V-A-R-I-A-B-L-E
Syllables4 (from its American pronunciation)
In writing13 times per million words; the 5,878th most frequent word form
Wrong spellings searchednone 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 variable?

Variable appears 13 times per million words in written English, the 5,878th 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 variable?

  • UK [ˈvɛə.ɹi.ə.bl̩]
  • US [ˈvæɹ.i.ə.bl̩]
  • [ˈvɛɹ.i.ə.bl̩]

Variable 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: En-us-variable.ogg, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Wodencafe-variable.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).

Forms of variable

  • more variable comparative
  • most variable superlative
  • variables plural

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

What does variable mean?

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

adjective

  1. 1

    Able to vary or be varied.

    variable winds or seasons; a variable quantity; a variable resistor

  2. 2

    Likely to vary.

  3. 3

    Marked by diversity or difference.

  4. 4

    Having no fixed quantitative value.

  5. 5

    Tending to deviate from a normal or recognized type.

noun

  1. 1

    Something that is variable.

  2. 2

    Something whose value may be dictated or discovered.

    There are several variables to consider here.

  3. 3

    A quantity that may assume any one of a set of values.

  4. 4

    A symbol representing a variable.

  5. 5

    A named memory location in which a program can store intermediate results and from which it can read them.

  6. 6

    A variable star.

  7. 7

    A shifting wind, or one that varies in force.

  8. 8

    Those parts of the sea where a steady wind is not expected, especially the parts between the trade-wind belts.

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

How do you abbreviate variable?

Wiktionary records 4 abbreviations of variable: var, var., vbl., vrbl.

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

Variable in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese

LanguageWords
Frenchvariable (able to vary), paramètre (something whose value may be dictated or…)
Germanvariabel (able to vary), Variable (something that is variable), Parameter (mathematics: a quantity that may assume any one…), Symbol (mathematics: a symbol representing a variable)
Portuguesevariável (able to vary)
Spanishvariable (able to vary)

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 variable come from?

Borrowed into Middle English in the 14th century from Old French variable, from Latin variare (“to change”), from varius (“different, various”). Equates to English vary + -able.

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

What to look up after variable