w
/ˈdʌbəl.juː/letter, noun, adjective, preposition
w is spelled W: one letter and 3 syllables. It appears 162 times per million words in written English, the 625th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a letter, w means “The twenty-third letter of the English alphabet, called double-u and written in the Latin script” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in w?
| Letters | 1: W |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 162 times per million words; the 625th 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 w?
W appears 162 times per million words in written English, the 625th 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 w?
- /ˈdʌbəl.juː/
- /ˈdʌbə.juː/
- /ˈdʌbiː.(j)uː/
W has 3 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-w.ogg, En-au-W.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of w
- ws plural
- w's plural
- w⚓s plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does w mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
letter
- 1
The twenty-third letter of the English alphabet, called double-u and written in the Latin script.
noun
- 1
watt
- 2
west
- 3
witness
- 4
work
- 5
Abbreviation of win.
adjective
- 1
wide
- 2
white
- 3
successful, admirable, good
W rizz.
preposition
- 1
Abbreviation of with.
- 2
with a wing (on the Enneagram)
When Sharon took the Enneagram test, she came out as a 3w2.
letter
- 1
The twenty-third letter of the English alphabet, called double U and written in the Latin script.
noun
- 1
Abbreviation of women (sign on toilet door).
- 2
Abbreviation of west.
- 3
Abbreviation of Wednesday.
- 4
Abbreviation of wins (statistic).
- 5
Abbreviation of win.
You say that like it's not an absolute W.
- 6
Abbreviation of wicket.
- 7
Abbreviation of warrant.
adjective
- 1
slangExcellent, top-notch (abbreviation of winner). (Compare noun etymology 2, noun sense 4 and etymology 2, noun sense 5.)
You, sir, are a W man.
preposition
- 1
Alternative form of wᵗ (an obsolete abbreviation of with).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
W in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense west:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| German | W |
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.