Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

petit

/ˈpɛtət/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.27 in modern English

Syllables
pe-tit
IPA
/ˈpɛtət/
7
Scrabble Score
5
Letters
2
Syllables
4
Unique Chars

Meaning

adj

Petite: small, little.

adj

Petty, in its various senses:

Obsolete

adj

Petty, in its various senses:

adj

Petty, in its various senses:

adj

Petty, in its various senses:

Archaic

noun

A little schoolboy.

Obsolete

noun

A kind of pigeon.

Obsolete

noun

Synonym of brevier.

Dated; Uncountable

Example Sentences

Etymology

From Middle English petit, from Old French petit, from Late Latin *pitittus, diminutive of Latin *pit-, possibly from Proto-Celtic *pett- (“part, bit, piece”) (see Latin pettia), or of imitative origin. Compare also Latin pitinnus (“small”), pitulus, Italian pezza. Doublet of petty.

Origin

Word Breakdown

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /ˈpɛtət/
  • British English: /ˈpɛti/

Usage

Inflected Forms

more petit (comparative) most petit (superlative) petits (plural)

Phrases

petit bag petit bourgeois petit bribing petit-bribing petit canon petit cape petit captain petit chapman

Frequently Paired Words

petite petty petit gâteau puisne puny

Synonyms

brevier

Rhymes With

betty spaghetti sweaty getty bette jetty confetti yeti serengeti hetty nettie letty

Questions

How do you pronounce petit?
The recorded pronunciation is /ˈpɛtət/.
What does petit mean?
Petite: small, little.
Where does petit come from?
It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce petit

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