Forum Discussion
Delete cells with exactly three syllables
I think this is what you're looking to do (the 3 consonants don't have to be consecutive):
=BYROW(words,LAMBDA(w,COUNTA(REGEXEXTRACT(w,"[^aeiou]",1,1))=3))Regexextract checks for anything not a vowel (case insensitive) and COUNTA is there to count the consonants. The function is applied with BYROW.
You could then filter for TRUE and delete as needed.
If you had been intending to identify word length in syllables, you would need a pronunciation source, such as most dictionaries. The Gutenberg Project offers (for free) this old-but-undated Webster's Unabridged Dictionary that could be used for that; the extraction of words and their syllable counts would include significant VBA coding. But the derived word forms (noun plurals, verb tenses, etc.) would be incomplete, and as this is an old work, some word spellings have changed, some pronunciations have changed, and other words were then not yet in use.
Identifying the number of consonants is more straightforward, but the sometimes-vowels Y and W cause a problem. See the attached workbook for more information and a partial solution. The count of consonants can mostly be done with formulas (I used helper columns). But to "delete" words requires a script; I include VBA code for that in the workbook. (The workbook is not macro-enabled; I will assume that you know how to create and edit macros.)
Edit: The forum software again loses a file that I attached (but it was not the one I intended anyway). Trying again...
Edit #2: Well that failed also. So access the workbook on OneDrive: 2025-10-02 RAHI words containing 3 consonants.xlsx
Rahiros​ : It looks to me as if SnowMan55​ has solved your challenging problem. Take a look at his solution and (commendably) his explanation! If it does do what you need, please mark is as the solution.