Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

bluebeard

/blˈubˌiɹd/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: 2.18 in modern English

Syllables: blue-beard
IPA: /blˈubˌiɹd/

14

Scrabble Score

9

Letters

2

Syllables

7

Unique Chars

Meaning

name

A famous fairy tale written by Charles Perrault in 1697 about a violent nobleman who has the habit of murdering his wives and the attempts of his current wife to avoid the same fate.

name

The nobleman who is the title character of the story.

noun

A man who marries and then murders one wife after another.

noun

Any member of the genus Caryopteris of plants native to eastern Asia, now cultivated in gardens.

Countable; Uncountable

Example Sentences

"Henry never lived down his reputation as a Bluebeard, and only a few years before his death sporting gentlemen in Antwerp were laying bets that the English Lothario would divorce and marry once again."

Etymology

Calque of French Barbe-Bleue (literally “blue beard”).

Usage

Inflected Forms

Bluebeards (plural)

Derived Forms

Bluebeardesque

Phrases

common bluebeard Mongolian bluebeard

Frequently Paired Words

bluebead

Questions

How do you pronounce bluebeard?: The recorded pronunciation is /blˈubˌiɹd/.
What does bluebeard mean?: A famous fairy tale written by Charles Perrault in 1697 about a violent nobleman who has the habit of murdering his wives and the attempts of his current wife to avoid the same fate.
Where does bluebeard come from?: Calque of French Barbe-Bleue (literally “blue beard”).

How to pronounce bluebeard

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “bluebeard”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/blˈubˌiɹd/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “bluebeard”.
Repeat and practice — Say “bluebeard” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.