Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

cartoon

/kɑɹˈtun/

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: 4.08 in modern English

Syllables: car-toon
IPA: /kɑɹˈtun/

9

Scrabble Score

7

Letters

2

Syllables

6

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A humorous drawing, often with a caption, or a strip of such drawings.

noun

A drawing satirising current public figures.

noun

An artist's preliminary sketch.

noun

A full-sized drawing that serves as the template for a fresco, a tapestry, etc.

noun

An animated piece of film which is often but not exclusively humorous.

noun

A cartoon series.

noun

A diagram in a scientific concept.

verb

To draw a cartoon, a humorous drawing.

Example Sentences

"The newspaper published a political cartoon mocking the mayor."
"The children watched a funny cartoon on TV."
"12 July 2012, Sam Adams, AV Club Ice Age: Continental Drift The matter of whether the world needs a fourth Ice Age movie pales beside the question of why there were three before it, but Continental Drift feels less like an extension of a theatrical franchise than an episode of a middling TV cartoon, lolling around on territory that’s already been settled."

Etymology

In British English first, from French carton (“sketch, cardboard, card”), from Italian cartone (“cardboard, carton, box”), augmentative of carta (“paper”), from Latin carta (“papyrus, paper”), from Ancient Greek χάρτης (khártēs) (see there for further etymology). Doublet of carton and card.

Origin

Source language: French

Word Breakdown

Root: carton, cartone, carta, χάρτης

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /kɑɹˈtun/
British English: /kɑːˈtuːn/

Inflected Forms

cartoons (plural) cartoons (present, singular) cartooning (participle, present) cartooned (participle, past) cartooned (past)

Derived Forms

cartooner cartoonery cartoonesque cartooney cartoonish cartoonist cartoonistic cartoonlike cartoony spokestoon

Phrases

animated cartoon cartoon character cartoon physics editorial cartoon pocket cartoon political cartoon Saturday-morning cartoon strip cartoon

Frequently Paired Words

cartoonist comic book funnies funny pages funny papers strip cartoon

Synonyms

comic strip strip cartoon caricature political cartoon animated cartoon animation toon sketch

Rhymes With

soon june afternoon moon tune immune noon balloon spoon typhoon platoon boon

Questions

How do you pronounce cartoon?: The recorded pronunciation is /kɑɹˈtun/.
What does cartoon mean?: A humorous drawing, often with a caption, or a strip of such drawings.
Where does cartoon come from?: It is traced to French.

How to pronounce cartoon

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