Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

city upon a hill

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.60 in modern English

Syllables
city upon a hill
IPA
23
Scrabble Score
13
Letters
1
Syllables
11
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A morally exemplary settlement, destined by God for greater things. Most often used to refer to the United States, or more specifically the Massachusetts Bay Colony.

Etymology

From Matthew 5:14. Cited by English colonist John Winthrop in the 1630 sermon A Model of Christian Charity. In turn, Winthrop's sermon was co-opted by later figures as an example of American exceptionalism.

Inflected Forms

city on a hill (alternative)

Questions

What does city upon a hill mean?
A morally exemplary settlement, destined by God for greater things. Most often used to refer to the United States, or more specifically the Massachusetts Bay Colony.
Where does city upon a hill come from?
From Matthew 5:14. Cited by English colonist John Winthrop in the 1630 sermon A Model of Christian Charity. In turn, Winthrop's sermon was co-opted by later figures as an example of American exceptionalism.

How to pronounce city upon a hill

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  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling () so you know which sounds to aim for.
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