weakness
/ˈwik.nɪs/noun
weakness is spelled W-E-A-K-N-E-S-S: 8 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 15 times per million words in written English, the 5,206th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, weakness means “The condition of being weak” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of weakness is weaknesses.
How many letters and syllables are in weakness?
| Letters | 8: W-E-A-K-N-E-S-S |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 15 times per million words; the 5,206th 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 weakness?
Weakness appears 15 times per million words in written English, the 5,206th 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 weakness?
- UK /ˈwiːk.nɪs/
- UK /ˈwiːk.nəs/
- US /ˈwik.nɪs/
Weakness 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: En-us-weakness.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of weakness
- weaknesses plural
- weakenes
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does weakness mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
The condition of being weak.
Near-synonyms: debility, frailty, vulnerability; vincibility
- 2
An inadequate quality; fault.
His inability to speak in front of an audience was his weakness.
- 3
A special fondness or obsessing desire.
She is an athlete who has a weakness for chocolate.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Weakness in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | faiblesse , point faible , faible |
| German | Schwäche , Faible |
| Portuguese | fraqueza , ponto fraco , queda, fraco |
| Spanish | debilidad, flaqueza , punto débil , debilidad por, cariño |
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 weakness come from?
From Middle English weyknesse, replacing earlier Middle English wocnesse, wakenes, wacnesse (“weakness”), from Old English wācnes (“weakness”). Equivalent to weak + -ness.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).