Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

possum

/ˈpɒsəm/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.94 in modern English

Syllables
pos-sum
IPA
/ˈpɒsəm/
10
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
2
Syllables
5
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A marsupial of several families of the order Diprotodontia, found in Australia and neighboring islands.

noun

An opossum, a marsupial of the family Didelphidae of the Americas.

American usage

verb

To play possum; to feign sleep, illness, or death.

Intransitive verb

Etymology

Derived from opossum by apheresis.

Usage

Inflected Forms

possums (plural) possums (present, singular) possuming (participle, present) possumed (participle, past) possumed (past)

Derived Forms

possumhaw possumlike possumwood

Phrases

act possum brush-tailed possum brushtail possum common possum common ringtail possum fairy possum feather-tailed possum Fergusson Island striped possum

Frequently Paired Words

opossum

Synonyms

opossum phalanger

Rhymes With

awesome blossom opossum fossum

Questions

How do you pronounce possum?
The recorded pronunciation is /ˈpɒsəm/.
What does possum mean?
A marsupial of several families of the order Diprotodontia, found in Australia and neighboring islands.
Where does possum come from?
Derived from opossum by apheresis.

How to pronounce possum

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