Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

sino-

/ˈsaɪnoʊ/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.22 in modern English

Syllables: sino-
IPA: /ˈsaɪnoʊ/

4

Scrabble Score

4

Letters

2

Syllables

4

Unique Chars

Meaning

prefix

Combining form of China and Chinese.

prefix

prefix

Alternative letter-case form of Sino- (“China”).

Example Sentences

"In the 1970s, Sino-Soviet rivalry also spread to Africa and the Middle East."
"He's a Sino-Kadazan: half Han, half Kadazan."

Etymology

From Medieval Latin Sina (“China”) and Late Latin Sīnae (“the Southern Chinese; Southern China”) + -o-, from Ancient Greek Σῖναι (Sînai), of uncertain etymology but likely from Sanskrit चीन (Cīna, “China”), possibly via Arabic صِين (Ṣīn, “China; the Chinese”) and usually held to ultimately derive from Old Chinese 秦 (*zin, “Qin”). See "Names of China" on Wikipedia.

Origin

Source language: Ancient Greek

Word Breakdown

Prefix: -o-
Root: Sina, Sīnae, Σῖναι, ^चीन, ^صِين, ^秦

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ˈsaɪnoʊ/
British English: /ˈsaɪnəʊ/

Frequently Paired Words

Sinim

Questions

How do you pronounce sino-?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈsaɪnoʊ/.
What does sino- mean?: Combining form of China and Chinese.
Where does sino- come from?: It is traced to Ancient Greek.

How to pronounce sino-

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