Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

peninsula

/pɪˈnɪn.s(j)ʊ.lə/

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.03 in modern English

Syllables: penin-su-la
IPA: /pɪˈnɪn.s(j)ʊ.lə/

11

Scrabble Score

9

Letters

4

Syllables

8

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A piece of land projecting into water from a larger land mass.

name

A township in Grand Traverse County, Michigan, United States.

name

A village in Summit County, Ohio, United States.

name

Ellipsis of Iberian Peninsula.

Example Sentences

"Man cancelling Lisa's inauguration as president: I sentence you to a lifetime of horror on Monster Island. Don't worry, it's just a name. [Lisa and others are chased by fire-breathing monsters] Lisa: He said it was just a name! Man being chased by monsters: What he meant is that Monster Island is actually a peninsula."
"[W]ith the exceptions of Switzerland, Sweden and the Peninsula, the whole of Europe was now in the grip of Hitler[.]"

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin paenīnsula, from paene (“almost”), and īnsula (“island”).

Origin

Source language: Latin

Word Breakdown

Root: paenīnsula

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /pɪˈnɪn.s(j)ʊ.lə/
British English: /pɪˈnɪn.sjʊ.lə/

Inflected Forms

peninsulas (plural) peninsulae (plural) pæninsula (alternative, archaic)

Derived Forms

midpeninsula peninsulate subpeninsula

Phrases

Absheron Peninsula Alaska Peninsula Aleutian Peninsula Aleut Peninsula Antarctic Peninsula Apennine Peninsula Arabian Peninsula Balkan Peninsula

Frequently Paired Words

insular insulate insulation insulator island isolate isolation isthmus

Synonyms

byland cape chersonese half-island headland ness

Homonyms

peninsular (non-rhotic, except South Asia)

Questions

How do you pronounce peninsula?: The recorded pronunciation is /pɪˈnɪn.s(j)ʊ.lə/.
What does peninsula mean?: A piece of land projecting into water from a larger land mass.
Where does peninsula come from?: It is traced to Latin.

How to pronounce peninsula

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