Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

turmeric

/ˈtɝ.mɚ.ɪk/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.87 in modern English

Syllables
turmer-ic
IPA
/ˈtɝ.mɚ.ɪk/
12
Scrabble Score
8
Letters
3
Syllables
7
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

An Indian plant (Curcuma longa), with aromatic rhizomes, part of the ginger family (Zingiberaceae).

Countable; Uncountable

noun

The pulverized rhizome of the turmeric plant, used for flavoring and to add a bright yellow color to food.

Countable; Uncountable

noun

A yellow to reddish-brown dye extracted from the turmeric plant.

Countable; Uncountable

Etymology

From Middle English turmeryte, tarmaret, of uncertain origin. Possibly corrupted from Arabic كُرْكُم (kurkum, “Curcuma”) or from Old French terre mérite (“deserving earth”), potentially as a folk etymology of the Arabic.

Origin

Word Breakdown

  • Root: turmeryte, كُرْكُم, terre

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /ˈtɝ.mɚ.ɪk/
  • British English: /ˈtɜː.m(ə).ɹɪk/

Usage

Inflected Forms

turmerics (plural)

Derived Forms

turmerol turmerone

Phrases

turmeric acid turmeric paper white turmeric wild turmeric

Frequently Paired Words

curcumin golden kunyit haldi

Synonyms

haldi E100 curcuma longa curcuma domestica

Questions

How do you pronounce turmeric?
The recorded pronunciation is /ˈtɝ.mɚ.ɪk/.
What does turmeric mean?
An Indian plant (Curcuma longa), with aromatic rhizomes, part of the ginger family (Zingiberaceae).
Where does turmeric come from?
It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce turmeric

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