consternation
/ˌkɒnstəˈneɪʃən/kon-stur-NAY-shuhn
/ˌkɑnstɚˈneɪʃən/kahn-stur-NAY-shuhn
Meaninga laying flat (with fear)
Common meaning: alarm and confusion
- conwith, together; thoroughly
- sternto spread out, lay flatLewis & Short, Latin Dictionary (1879), p. 1757 · scan
- ationnoun ending: act or result
‘with, together’ + ‘to spread out, lay flat’ → consternation
Sources & notes
Meaning: “Meaning” is the sense that emerges from the word’s roots; “Common meaning” is today’s everyday sense. Both written by us.
Pronunciation
- UK IPA: converted from the US form by rule (unchecked). Respelling: generated.
- No UK recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-GB voice.
- US IPA: CMUdict (BSD-2), converted to IPA by rule. Respelling: generated.
- No US recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-US voice.
Origin: Built on Latin sternō ‘to spread out, lay flat’.
Did you know: our wording, based on Lewis & Short, Latin Dictionary (1879), entry sternō, p. 1757 · dictionary scan; Skeat, Etymological Dictionary (1898), entry STREET, p. 602 · dictionary scan
Roots
- sternō, strāvī, strātum Latin “to spread out, lay flat”
Related words
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