Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

hornet

/ˈhɔɹ.nɪt/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: 3.15 in modern English

Syllables
hor-net
IPA
/ˈhɔɹ.nɪt/
9
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
2
Syllables
6
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

Any large wasp of the genus Vespa, having a brown-and-yellow-striped body and the ability to inflict a serious sting.

noun

A person who pesters with petty but ceaseless attacks.

noun

someone connected with Watford Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.

Etymology

From Middle English hernet, from Old English hyrnetu, hyrnete, from Proto-West Germanic *hurnutu, from Proto-Germanic *hurznutō (compare German Hornisse), alteration of Proto-Germanic *hursulǭ (compare Dutch horzel), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱr̥h₂sro- (“hornet”, literally “the one with horns (antennae)”), from *ḱerh₂- (“horn”) (compare Welsh creyryn (“gadfly”), Latin crābrō (“hornet”), Lithuanian širšė (“wasp”), Proto-Slavic *sьrxy (whence Old Church Slavonic сръшень (srŭšenĭ, “hornet”) and many others), Albanian grerë, grenzë (“wasp, hornet”)).

Origin

Word Breakdown

  • Root: hernet, hyrnetu, *hurnutu, *hurznutō, *hursulǭ, *ḱr̥h₂sro-

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /ˈhɔɹ.nɪt/
  • British English: /ˈhɔː.nɪt/

Inflected Forms

hornets (plural)

Derived Forms

hornetlike hornety

Phrases

Asian giant hornet Asian hornet Australian hornet bald-faced hornet bald hornet black-bellied hornet black-tailed hornet European hornet

Frequently Paired Words

bee wasp

Rhymes With

cornett cornet

Questions

How do you pronounce hornet?
The recorded pronunciation is /ˈhɔɹ.nɪt/.
What does hornet mean?
Any large wasp of the genus Vespa, having a brown-and-yellow-striped body and the ability to inflict a serious sting.
Where does hornet come from?
It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce hornet

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