Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

nebula

/ˈnɛb.jə.lə/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.23 in modern English

Syllables
neb-u-la
IPA
/ˈnɛb.jə.lə/
8
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
3
Syllables
6
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A cloud in outer space consisting of gas or dust (e.g. a cloud formed after a star explodes).

noun

A white spot or slight opacity of the cornea.

Archaic

noun

A cloudy appearance in the urine.

Obsolete

Example Sentences

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Latin nebula (“little cloud, mist”). First attested in 1655. Akin to Ancient Greek νεφέλη (nephélē, “cloud”), German Nebel (“mist, nebula”), Old Norse nifl, Polish niebo (“sky, heaven”), Russian не́бо (nébo, “sky”).

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /ˈnɛb.jə.lə/
  • British English: /ˈnɛb.jə.lə/

Usage

Inflected Forms

nebulae (plural) nebulas (plural) nebulæ (archaic, plural)

Derived Forms

nebulalike nebulium nebulization supernebula

Phrases

Crab Nebula dark nebula diffuse nebula emission nebula enormous Lyman-alpha nebula planetary nebula preplanetary nebula protoplanetary nebula

Frequently Paired Words

nebulosity nebulous nebular plerion nova remnant supernova remnant Herbig-Haro object Bok globule

Questions

How do you pronounce nebula?
The recorded pronunciation is /ˈnɛb.jə.lə/.
What does nebula mean?
A cloud in outer space consisting of gas or dust (e.g. a cloud formed after a star explodes).
Where does nebula come from?
Learned borrowing from Latin nebula (“little cloud, mist”). First attested in 1655. Akin to Ancient Greek νεφέλη (nephélē, “cloud”), German Nebel (“mist, nebula”), Old Norse nifl, Polish niebo (“sky, heaven”), Russian не́бо (nébo, “sky”).

How to pronounce nebula

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