Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

plectrum

/ˈplɛk.tɹəm/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.87 in modern English

Syllables: plec-trum
IPA: /ˈplɛk.tɹəm/

14

Scrabble Score

8

Letters

2

Syllables

8

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A small piece of plastic, metal, ivory, etc., for plucking the strings of a guitar, lyre, mandolin, etc.

noun

A projection of bone or other stiff tissue, such as the ridges in some insects' stridulatory organs.

Example Sentences

"For sounds in winter nights, and often in winter days, I heard the forlorn but melodious note of a hooting owl indefinitely far; such a sound as the frozen earth would yield if struck with a suitable plectrum, the very lingua vernacula of Walden Wood, and quite familiar to me at last, though I never saw the bird while it was making it."

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin plēctrum, from Ancient Greek πλῆκτρον (plêktron, “anything to strike with, an instrument for striking the lyre, a spear point”), from πλήσσειν (plḗssein, “to strike, to smite, to sting”). Displaced native Old English sleġel.

Origin

Source language: Latin

Word Breakdown

Root: *pel-, plēctrum

Subject

Wiktionary places this term in Music.

Inflected Forms

plectrums (plural) plectra (plural) plectron (alternative)

Derived Forms

plectral plectric

Synonyms

guitar pick pick plectre plectron

Questions

How do you pronounce plectrum?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈplɛk.tɹəm/.
What does plectrum mean?: A small piece of plastic, metal, ivory, etc., for plucking the strings of a guitar, lyre, mandolin, etc.
Where does plectrum come from?: It is traced to Latin.

How to pronounce plectrum

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “plectrum”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈplɛk.tɹəm/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
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