Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

ortolan

/ˈɔɹ.tə.læn/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.66 in modern English

Syllables: or-tolan
IPA: /ˈɔɹ.tə.læn/

7

Scrabble Score

7

Letters

2

Syllables

6

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A small European migratory bunting (Emberiza hortulana), once eaten whole as a delicacy.

noun

Any of various similar birds, especially the bobolink, sora, or snow bunting.

American usage

noun

The greater short-toed lark (Calandrella brachydactyla).

Example Sentences

"[…]this taught him to consider Sophia as a most delicious morsel, indeed to regard her with the same desires which an ortolan inspires into the soul of an epicure."
"[…]the last flavor Mitterrand wished to savor belonged to the flesh of the endangered ortolan, a songbird the size of a human toe that is a crime to buy or hunt, and is certainly illegal to eat. Mitterrand devoured it in the traditional manner, first covering his head with an embroidered cloth, then inserting the entire bird into his mouth.[…]Only its head should dangle out from between your lips. Bite off the head and discard."

Etymology

From Middle French hortolan (“gardener”), from Latin hortulānus (“gardener”). Doublet of hortulan.

Origin

Source language: Middle French

Word Breakdown

Root: hortolan, hortulānus

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ˈɔɹ.tə.læn/
British English: /ˈɔː.təl.ən/

Usage

American usage

Inflected Forms

ortolans (plural)

Phrases

ortolan bunting

Synonyms

ortolan bunting emberiza hortulana

Questions

How do you pronounce ortolan?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈɔɹ.tə.læn/.
What does ortolan mean?: A small European migratory bunting (Emberiza hortulana), once eaten whole as a delicacy.
Where does ortolan come from?: It is traced to Middle French.

How to pronounce ortolan

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