Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

treason

/ˈtɹiː.zən/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.84 in modern English

Syllables
trea-son
IPA
/ˈtɹiː.zən/
7
Scrabble Score
7
Letters
2
Syllables
7
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

The crime of betraying one’s own country.

Countable; Uncountable

noun

An act of treachery, betrayal of trust or confidence.

Countable; Uncountable

Example Sentences

Etymology

From Middle English tresoun, treison, from Anglo-Norman treson, from Old French traïson (“treason”), from trair, or from Latin trāditiō (“a giving up, handing over, surrender, delivery, tradition”), from trādō (“give up, hand over, deliver over, betray”, verb), from trāns- (“over, across”) + dō (“give”). Doublet of tradition and traitor; also related to betray.

Origin

Word Breakdown

  • Prefix: trāns
  • Root: *deh₃-, tresoun, treson, traison, trāditiō

Usage

Inflected Forms

Derived Forms

Phrases

Frequently Paired Words

Synonyms

Rhymes With

Questions

How do you pronounce treason?
The recorded pronunciation is /ˈtɹiː.zən/.
What does treason mean?
The crime of betraying one’s own country.
Where does treason come from?
It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce treason

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