Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

confucius

/kənˈfju.ʃəs/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: 3.10 in modern English

Syllables
Con-fu-cius
IPA
/kənˈfju.ʃəs/
16
Scrabble Score
9
Letters
3
Syllables
7
Unique Chars

Meaning

name

An influential Chinese philosopher who lived c. 551 BCE – c. 479 BCE; personal name Kong Qiu (孔丘).

name

A male given name from Latin.

Example Sentences

Etymology

Learned borrowing from New Latin Cōnfucius, from Mandarin 孔夫子 (Kǒng Fūzǐ, honorific title, literally “Master Kong”) + Latin -ius.

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /kənˈfju.ʃəs/
  • British English: /kənˈfjuː.ʃəs/

Subject

Wiktionary places this term in People.

Inflected Forms

Confuçius (alternative, obsolete)

Derived Forms

Frequently Paired Words

Rhymes With

Questions

How do you pronounce confucius?
The recorded pronunciation is /kənˈfju.ʃəs/.
What does confucius mean?
An influential Chinese philosopher who lived c. 551 BCE – c. 479 BCE; personal name Kong Qiu (孔丘).
Where does confucius come from?
Learned borrowing from New Latin Cōnfucius, from Mandarin 孔夫子 (Kǒng Fūzǐ, honorific title, literally “Master Kong”) + Latin -ius.

How to pronounce confucius

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