Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

ottawa

/ˈɑtəwə/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.98 in modern English

Syllables
ot-tawa
IPA
/ˈɑtəwə/
9
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
3
Syllables
4
Unique Chars

Meaning

name

A city in Ontario, Canada; the capital city of Canada.

name

A city in Ontario, Canada; the capital city of Canada.

name

A river flowing southeast between Ontario and Quebec, Canada into the St. Lawrence River.

Example Sentences

Etymology

From Ojibwe odaawaa/ᐅᑡᐙ (“an Ottawa; a trader”), from Proto-Algonquian *atawewa (“to trade”).

Word Breakdown

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /ˈɑtəwə/
  • British English: /ˈɒtəwə/

Inflected Forms

Derived Forms

Phrases

Mega-Ottawa Ottawa County Ottawa-Gatineau Ottawa-Hull Wiktionary’s coverage of Ottawa terms

Frequently Paired Words

Ottawan Outaouais Wiktionary’s coverage of Ottawa terms Odawa Odaawaa Ottowa Hull Gatineau

Synonyms

Questions

How do you pronounce ottawa?
The recorded pronunciation is /ˈɑtəwə/.
What does ottawa mean?
A city in Ontario, Canada; the capital city of Canada.
Where does ottawa come from?
From Ojibwe odaawaa/ᐅᑡᐙ (“an Ottawa; a trader”), from Proto-Algonquian *atawewa (“to trade”).

How to pronounce ottawa

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