Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

don't tread on me

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.52 in modern English

Syllables
don't tread- on me
IPA
17
Scrabble Score
13
Letters
2
Syllables
8
Unique Chars

Meaning

phrase

A slogan, associated during the American Revolutionary War with freedom from British rule, and in more recent years with libertarianism and anti-government sentiments.

American usage

Etymology

Calque of Late Latin nōlī mē tangere (literally “do not touch me”), from John 20:17 in the Bible. The phrase was initially rendered as dont tread on me, without apostrophe, as dont was then an accepted contraction of do not. In some later versions, due to standards for apostrophes becoming more strict since the 18th century, the first word was changed to don't.

Usage

Inflected Forms

dont tread on me (alternative)

Questions

What does don't tread on me mean?
A slogan, associated during the American Revolutionary War with freedom from British rule, and in more recent years with libertarianism and anti-government sentiments.
Where does don't tread on me come from?
Calque of Late Latin nōlī mē tangere (literally “do not touch me”), from John 20:17 in the Bible. The phrase was initially rendered as dont tread on me, without apostrophe, as dont was then an accepted contraction of do not. In some later versions, due to standards for apostrophes becoming more strict since the 18th century, the first word was changed to don't.

How to pronounce don't tread on me

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “don't tread on me”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling () so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “don't tread on me”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “don't tread on me” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.