wrongdoing
/ˈɹɒŋˌduːɪŋ/noun, verb
wrongdoing is spelled W-R-O-N-G-D-O-I-N-G: 10 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 1.8 times per million words in written English, the 20,629th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, wrongdoing means “Violation of standards of behavior” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of wrongdoing is wrongdoings.
How many letters and syllables are in wrongdoing?
| Letters | 10: W-R-O-N-G-D-O-I-N-G |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.8 times per million words; the 20,629th 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 wrongdoing?
Wrongdoing appears 1.8 times per million words in written English, the 20,629th 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 wrongdoing?
- /ˈɹɒŋˌduːɪŋ/
Wrongdoing 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: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Persent101-wrongdoing.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with wrongdoing
Also written: wrong-doing (one word or two).
Sources: English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
Forms of wrongdoing
- wrongdoings plural
- wrong-doing
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does wrongdoing mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
Violation of standards of behavior.
A Chinese proverb goes, "He who commits wrongdoing repeatedly will come to no good end."
- 2
An instance of doing wrong.
verb
- 1
present participle and gerund of wrongdo
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Wrongdoing in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | malfaisance , méfait |
| German | Fehlverhalten |
| Portuguese | malfeitoria, transgressão , malfeito, maldade |
| Spanish | fechoría, maldad, ilícito , iniquidad, infamia |
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 wrongdoing come from?
From Middle English wrong doyng, wrong doynge, wrong doinge, equivalent to wrong + doing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).