Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

catamaran

/ˈkæ.tə.məˌɹæn/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: 2.58 in modern English

Syllables: cata-ma-ran
IPA: /ˈkæ.tə.məˌɹæn/

13

Scrabble Score

9

Letters

4

Syllables

6

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A twin-hulled ship or boat.

noun

A quarrelsome woman; a scold.

Colloquial; Obsolete

noun

A raft of three pieces of wood lashed together, the middle piece being longer than the others, and serving as a keel on which the rower squats while paddling.

Obsolete

noun

An old kind of fireship.

Obsolete

Example Sentences

"Swift over the seas the vessel drives; Madras appears in sight. The first object catching the eye, upon the anchor being cast, was an Indian upon his catamaran, who, making a sudden motion, sprung to the side of the ship, grappled there for a moment, and the next was on the deck."
"She meddles with my prescriptions for your wife; she doctors the infant in private: you'll never have a quiet house or a quiet wife as long as that old Catamaran is here."
"Three or four strange-looking things now came close to our boat, which I understood were called ‘catamarans’, consisting of nothing more than two or three large trees, the trunk part only strongly lashed together, upon which sat two men nearly in a state of nature […] ."

Etymology

From Tamil கட்டுமரம் (kaṭṭumaram), from கட்டு (kaṭṭu, “to tie”) + மரம் (maram, “tree, wood”).

Word Breakdown

Root: கட்டுமரம்

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ˈkæ.tə.məˌɹæn/
British English: /ˌkæ.tə.məˈɹæn/

Usage

Inflected Forms

catamarans (plural)

Derived Forms

cat cataraft

Frequently Paired Words

trimaran monohull outrigger canoe

Synonyms

twinhull cat

Rhymes With

an can than man one-man plan began san fan japan ran van

Questions

How do you pronounce catamaran?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈkæ.tə.məˌɹæn/.
What does catamaran mean?: A twin-hulled ship or boat.
Where does catamaran come from?: From Tamil கட்டுமரம் (kaṭṭumaram), from கட்டு (kaṭṭu, “to tie”) + மரம் (maram, “tree, wood”).

How to pronounce catamaran

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “catamaran”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈkæ.tə.məˌɹæn/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
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