How do you pronounce sesame?

The recorded pronunciation is /ˈsɛsəmi/.

Where does sesame come from?

It is traced to Middle English.

sesame

/ˈsɛsəmi/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.46 in modern English

Syllables: ses-a-me
IPA: /ˈsɛsəmi/

Scrabble Score

Letters

Syllables

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A tropical Asian plant (Sesamum indicum) bearing small flat seeds used as food and as a source of oil.

Countable; Uncountable

noun

The seed of this plant.

Countable; Uncountable

Example Sentences

"First, marinate the tofu. In a bowl, whisk the kecap manis, chilli sauce, and sesame oil together. Cut the tofu into strips about 1cm thick, mix gently (so it doesn't break) with the marinade and leave in the fridge for half an hour."

Etymology

From late Middle English sisamie, from Latin sīsamum, sēsamum, from Ancient Greek σήσαμον (sḗsamon), from Aramaic שושמא (šūššmā), shortening of שומשומא (šumššumā), from Akkadian 𒊭𒈦𒌑𒈬 (šamaššammū, “oil plant”), compound of 𒉌𒄑 (šaman, “oil”) and 𒌑 (šammum, “plant”). The modern pronunciation is perhaps influenced by (transliterations of) Greek σησάμη (sisámi). Doublet of sesamum.

Origin

Source language: Middle English

Word Breakdown

Root: sisamie, sīsamum, σήσαμον, שושמא, šamaššammum, σησάμη

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ˈsɛsəmi/
British English: /ˈsɛsəmi/

Usage

Inflected Forms

sesames (plural) sesamé (alternative) sesamë (alternative)

Derived Forms

sesamin sesamoid sesamol sesamolin

Phrases

black sesame soup German sesame open sesame sesame dot sesame grass sesame leaf sesame oil sesame seed

Synonyms

beniseed benne gingelly sesame seed benni benny sesamum indicum

Rhymes With

jessamy