phenomenon
/fəˈnɒməˌnɒn/fuh-NO-muh-non
/fəˈnɑməˌnɑn/fuh-NAH-muh-nahn
Meaningsomething shown
Common meaning: something that happens and can be seen or noticed
- phento bring to light, showLiddell & Scott, Intermediate Greek-English Lexicon (1889), p. 853 · scan
- omenona thing that shows itself
Journey through time
- Aryan root · reconstructed√BHA‘shine’No written record; from Skeat’s list of Aryan roots, no. 223, p. 738 · scan
- Greekφαίνω‘to bring to light, show’
- Latinphenomenon
- Englishphenomenon‘something that happens and can be seen or noticed’ · today
phen also in: phenomenologysycophant
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 Greek φαίνω ‘to bring to light, show’.
Did you know: our wording, based on Liddell & Scott, Intermediate Greek-English Lexicon (1889), entry φαίνω, p. 853 · dictionary scan
Roots
- φαίνω Greek “to bring to light, show”
Related words
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