oscar
/ˈɑs.kɚ/
Word Rarity
Uncommon
Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.31 in modern English
7
Scrabble Score
5
Letters
2
Syllables
5
Unique Chars
Meaning
name
A male given name from Irish or Old English.
name
A surname from Irish [in turn originating as a patronymic], a rare anglicization of Mac Oscair (literally “son of Oscar”) (McCusker).
name
A locale in the United States.
name
A locale in the United States.
name
A locale in the United States.
name
A locale in the United States.
name
A locale in the United States.
name
A locale in the United States.
Example Sentences
- "My son, though alone, is brave. Oscar is like a beam of the sky: he turns around, and the people fall."
- "Had a funny first name, like Oscar or maybe - no! I remember now. It was Felix. Felix Tanner."
- "Primarily seen as a publicity vehicle for late-year releases, the awards show and its promoters have lately made pretensions to Oscar oracling: Jamie Foxx won the “breakthrough actor of the year” prize for “Ray” in 2004, after all, and Paul Haggis and his ensemble cast were honored for “Crash” four months before it won best picture."
- "The gulf between cinephiles and the public has grown wide. There are pictures that make a lot of money, but seldom win big Oscars or attract young people to the show"
Etymology
Exact origin uncertain. Resuscitated by James Mcpherson in The Works of Ossian (1765). Napoleon, an admirer of the Ossianic poems, chose it for his godson Oscar Bernadotte, who became a king of Sweden. The modern given name is a conflation of two unrelated names: first, Middle Irish Oscar (the name of Fionn Mac Cumhaill's grandson in Irish mythology), from Middle Irish os (“deer”) + cara (“friend”); and second, Old English Ōscār, Ōsgār (personal name, literally “spear of the gods/spear of God”), from Old English ōs (“god”) and gār (“spear”) (see Oswald). Compare German Ansgar (personal name), Danish Asker, Asger (personal name), Norwegian Asgeir (personal name), Icelandic Ásgeir (personal name). (Academy Award): Disputed. Said to have been named by actress Bette Davis after her first husband, Harmon Oscar Nelson, or by secretary Margaret Herrick after her cousin Oscar Pierce.
Origin
- Source language: Old English
Word Breakdown
- Root: Oscar, -, Ōscār, ōs
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈɑs.kɚ/
- British English: /ˈɒs.kə/