yammer

/ˈjæm.ə/

//ˈjæm.ə// verb

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"yammer" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“yammer” is uncommon English (frequency #91,159 among 366 “Y” headwords), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#91,159
frequency rank, English
366
“Y” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To complain peevishly.

Corpus desk

Index EN-yammer · yammer · English

yammer · rank #91,159 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #91,159
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 366
  • PHOTO-FINISH Yashin

Nearest frequency peer: Yashin (+1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Long-tail ranks near “yammer”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “yammer” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for yammer
PropertyValue
Headwordyammer
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/ˈjæm.ə/
Letters6
Frequency rank#91,159
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “yammer” in English

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).yammerfalls in this rarity band:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “Yashin” (#91,160), “yawl” (#91,161), “wud” (#91,155). Among 366 “Y” headwords, “yammer” is #91,159. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

yammer is uncommon English at frequency #91,159 among 366 “Y” headwords, classed as averb, transcribed /ˈjæm.ə/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 5 senses are on record.

No generated misspelling entries exist for yammer in our index, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English ȝameren, ȝaumeren, yemeren, ȝomeren, from Old English ġeōmrian (“to lament”), from Proto-West Germanic *jāmarōn, from Proto-Germanic *jēmarōną (“to show misery or sadness”), from Proto-Germanic *jēmaraz (“miserable, sorrowful, sad”), fro… The correct English form is yammer, spelled Y-A-M-M-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    To complain peevishly.
  2. 2
    To talk loudly and persistently.
  3. 3
    To repeat on and on, usually loudly or in complaint.
  4. 4
    To make an outcry; to clamor.
  5. 5
    to repeatedly call someone's name.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

These source excerpts show how yammer appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. It was a ship, but a whale to the Dark Nebula’s minnow; and on its side was the Spaceship-and-Sun of the Empire. Every alarm on the ship yammered hysterically.

Etymology

From Middle English ȝameren, ȝaumeren, yemeren, ȝomeren, from Old English ġeōmrian (“to lament”), from Proto-West Germanic *jāmarōn, from Proto-Germanic *jēmarōną (“to show misery or sadness”), from Proto-Germanic *jēmaraz (“miserable, sorrowful, sad”), from Proto-Indo-European *yem- (“to hold, match, defeat”). Reinforced by cognate Middle Dutch jammeren (modern Dutch jammeren), from the same ultimate origin. Cognate also with Scots yammer, Saterland Frisian jammerje, West Frisian jammerje, German Low German jammern, German jammern, Danish jamre, Norwegian jamre. Compare also Old Norse amra (“to howl, wail, yammer”).

Synonyms

whinegrumbleprattlebabbleyak

This word in other languages

jammern(Deutsch)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "yammer"?
"yammer" is spelled Y-A-M-M-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈjæm.ə/.
What does "yammer" mean?
As a verb, "yammer" means: To complain peevishly.
How do you pronounce "yammer"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "yammer" is /ˈjæm.ə/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "yammer"?
From Middle English ȝameren, ȝaumeren, yemeren, ȝomeren, from Old English ġeōmrian (“to lament”), from Proto-West Germanic *jāmarōn, from Proto-Germanic *jēmarōną (“to show misery or sadness”), from Proto-Germanic *jēmaraz (“miserable, sorrowful, ... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "yammer", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Yashin#91,160yelped#91,163Yilmaz#91,166Wisner#91,150

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list