Link Centre Dictionary

syllable

syl·lable

US/ˈsɪl.ə.bəl/ uncommon

noun

1.

a unit of spoken language larger than a phoneme

  • “the word”
  • “has two syllables”

Origin

From Middle English syllable, sillable, syllabylle, sylabul, from Anglo-Norman sillable, from Old French sillebe, from Latin syllaba, from Ancient Greek συλλαβή (sullabḗ), from συλλαμβάνω (sullambánō, “to gather together”), from συν- (sun-, “together”) + λαμβάνω (lambánō, “to take”).

Phrases

  • checked syllable
  • closed syllable
  • free syllable
  • in words of one syllable
  • open syllable
  • syllable timing
  • syllable weight
  • words of one syllable

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

Narrower terms

Parts

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.