syl·la·ble
ˈsi-lə-bəl 
1
: a unit of spoken language that is next bigger than a speech sound and consists of one or more vowel sounds alone or of a syllabic consonant alone or of either with one or more consonant sounds preceding or following
2
: one or more letters (such as syl, la, and ble) in a word (such as syl*la*ble) usually set off from the rest of the word by a centered dot or a hyphen and roughly corresponding to the syllables of spoken language and treated as helps to pronunciation or as guides to placing hyphens at the end of a line
3
: the smallest conceivable expression or unit of something : jot
4
syllabled; syllabling
ˈsi-lə-b(ə-)liŋ
1
: to give a number or arrangement of syllables to (a word or verse)
2
: to express or utter in or as if in syllables
Synonyms
Examples of syllable in a Sentence
Noun
The word “doctor” has two syllables.
“Doctor” is a two-syllable word.
The first syllable of the word “doctor” is given stress.
Recent Examples on the Web
Zoe Gowen, Southern Living, 26 Mar. 2024
Here is a celebrated example from a ninth-century waka poem, the brief verse of 31 syllables that forms the backbone of classical Japanese poetry.
—Paul S. Atkins, The Conversation, 12 Mar. 2024
As with all our extra syllables, and you with all your R sounds.
—Emily Weaver, Peoplemag, 4 Mar. 2024
Mac would send a steady flow of lyrics, and before writing a note, Ray would simply read them — studying the meaning, the narrative, the rhythm and the stressing of syllables.
—Joshua Barone, New York Times, 4 Feb. 2024
After all these years, your name still lights a flame in the poetical mind — to set those two syllables to rhyme, to music, to anything!
—Tom Gliatto, Peoplemag, 10 Jan. 2024
One syllable of the inmates’ graffitied verses might get stretched out over bits of snaking melody sung in close harmony.
—An Epic Set, Vulture, 16 Jan. 2024
McFarlane raised his hands to break down the syllables of his top-secret device.
—David Betancourt, Washington Post, 21 Dec. 2023
To them, these cultural questions are encoded into every syllable of our history.
—Michelle Orange, Harper's Magazine, 3 Nov. 2023
Noun
Short, clear names with one to two syllables also work better than lengthy names.
—Zoe Gowen, Southern Living, 26 Mar. 2024
Here is a celebrated example from a ninth-century waka poem, the brief verse of 31 syllables that forms the backbone of classical Japanese poetry.
—Paul S. Atkins, The Conversation, 12 Mar. 2024
As with all our extra syllables, and you with all your R sounds.
—Emily Weaver, Peoplemag, 4 Mar. 2024
Mac would send a steady flow of lyrics, and before writing a note, Ray would simply read them — studying the meaning, the narrative, the rhythm and the stressing of syllables.
—Joshua Barone, New York Times, 4 Feb. 2024
After all these years, your name still lights a flame in the poetical mind — to set those two syllables to rhyme, to music, to anything!
—Tom Gliatto, Peoplemag, 10 Jan. 2024
One syllable of the inmates’ graffitied verses might get stretched out over bits of snaking melody sung in close harmony.
—An Epic Set, Vulture, 16 Jan. 2024
McFarlane raised his hands to break down the syllables of his top-secret device.
—David Betancourt, Washington Post, 21 Dec. 2023
To them, these cultural questions are encoded into every syllable of our history.
—Michelle Orange, Harper's Magazine, 3 Nov. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'syllable.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near syllable
Cite this Entry
“Syllable.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/syllable. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
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