Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

dun dun dun

/ˈdʌn ˌdʌn ˈdʌn/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.85 in modern English

Syllables: dun -dun -dun
IPA: /ˈdʌn ˌdʌn ˈdʌn/

12

Scrabble Score

9

Letters

3

Syllables

3

Unique Chars

Meaning

intj

Used as a dramatic pause, or to emphasize that something is frightening, thrilling, etc.

Informal

Example Sentences

"I am not going to tell you the exact locations of my stops, but my final destination (dun dun dun) is London, England. It is there that I will figure out my life purpose."
""All right—dun, dun, dun! Time to get measured, hon." Luke tried to play off the seriousness of my weekly face-to-face with my own potential unworthiness to be a model with this little bit, but it made me feel even worse, thinking about how many empty calories in champagne and vodka I'd slurped down since I last saw him, […]"
"In the movie [RoboCop (1987)], central Detroit is "Old Detroit." […] When police officer Alex Murphy starts his term in Old Detroit, his fellow officers tell him, "Welcome to hell." / Dun dun dun."

Etymology

An onomatopoeic representation of a three-note dramatic sting (“short musical phrase”). See the Wikipedia article for details of its origin.

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ˈdʌn ˌdʌn ˈdʌn/
British English: /ˈdʌn ˌdʌn ˈdʌn/

Usage

Informal

Frequently Paired Words

dun

Rhymes With

1 26+6=1 'un temperature gun have one's mind about one rewon respun

Questions

How do you pronounce dun dun dun?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈdʌn ˌdʌn ˈdʌn/.
What does dun dun dun mean?: Used as a dramatic pause, or to emphasize that something is frightening, thrilling, etc.
Where does dun dun dun come from?: An onomatopoeic representation of a three-note dramatic sting (“short musical phrase”). See the Wikipedia article for details of its origin.

How to pronounce dun dun dun

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “dun dun dun”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈdʌn ˌdʌn ˈdʌn/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
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Repeat and practice — Say “dun dun dun” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.