Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

rhine

/ɹaɪn/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.28 in modern English

Syllables: rhine
IPA: /ɹaɪn/

8

Scrabble Score

5

Letters

1

Syllables

5

Unique Chars

Meaning

name

A major river in western Europe, which flows through Switzerland, Austria, Liechtenstein, Germany, France and the Netherlands, before emptying into the North Sea.

noun

A watercourse; a ditch for water.

British usage

noun

A running waterway that links a ditch or stream to a river.

Example Sentences

"Roads on either side of the river Rhine will be closed as authorities seal off the large evacuation zone. The Unesco World Heritage Cologne Cathedral sits just outside the area."
"the Black Ditch and the Langmoor Rhine"

Etymology

From Middle English Rine, Ryne, from Old English Rīn (“the Rhine”), from Middle High German and Old High German Rīn, from Proto-West Germanic *Rīn, from Proto-Germanic *Rīnaz, from Gaulish Rēnos, from a Pre-Celtic or Proto-Celtic *reinos; one of a class of river names built from Proto-Indo-European *h₃reyH- (“to move, flow, run”). Cognate with Old High German Rīn ("the Rhine"; > German Rhein), Old Norse Rín (“the Rhine”), Dutch Rijn (“the Rhine”). Related also to Latin rivus ("river"), in Celtic with an -n- suffix as in Old Irish rīan (“run”) (more at run). The spelling with Rh- is due to the influence of Ancient Greek Ῥῆνος (Rhênos) (via French Rhin).

Origin

Source language: Middle English

Word Breakdown

Root: Rine, Rīn, -, *Rīn, *Rīnaz, Rēnos

Usage

British usage

Inflected Forms

the Rhine (canonical) rhines (plural) rean (alternative)

Derived Forms

Rhenian Rhenish Rhineland rhinestone Rhinish

Phrases

High Rhine North Rhine Rhine Falls Rhine gold Rhine Province

Rhymes With

line fine design sign mine nine wine decline define divine shine pine

Questions

How do you pronounce rhine?: The recorded pronunciation is /ɹaɪn/.
What does rhine mean?: A major river in western Europe, which flows through Switzerland, Austria, Liechtenstein, Germany, France and the Netherlands, before emptying into the North Sea.
Where does rhine come from?: It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce rhine

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