violence
vio·lence/ˈvaɪ(ə)lən(t)s/noun, verb
violence is spelled V-I-O-L-E-N-C-E: 8 letters and 2 syllables (vio·lence). It appears 56 times per million words in written English, the 1,822nd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, violence means “Extreme force” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of violence is violences.
How many letters and syllables are in violence?
| Letters | 8: V-I-O-L-E-N-C-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: vio·lence |
| In writing | 56 times per million words; the 1,822nd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in 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).
How common is violence?
Violence appears 56 times per million words in written English, the 1,822nd 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 violence?
- /ˈvaɪ(ə)lən(t)s/
- /ˈvaɪ.(ə)ˌlɛns/
Violence has 2 syllables, split vio·lence in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-violence.ogg, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Pvanp7-violence.wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-violence.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of violence
- violences plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- violencing participle, present
- violenced participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does violence mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
Extreme force.
The violence of the storm, fortunately, was more awesome than destructive.
- 2
Physical action which causes destruction, harm, pain, or suffering.
We try to avoid violence in resolving conflicts.
- 3
Widespread fighting.
Violence between the government and the rebels continues.
- 4
A perceived injustice, especially in the context of social justice.
The translation does violence to the original novel.
verb
- 1
nonstandardTo subject to violence.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Violence in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | violence |
| German | Gewalt , Gewalttaten , Gewalttätigkeiten |
| Portuguese | violência , hostilidade , injustiça |
| Spanish | violencia |
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 violence come from?
Inherited from Middle English violence, borrowed from Old French violence, borrowed from Latin violentia, from violēns /violentus (“violent”) + -ia. See violent. Displaced native Old English stræc.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).