Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

tuvalu

/tuˈvɑ.lu/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.31 in modern English

Syllables: tu-valu
IPA: /tuˈvɑ.lu/

9

Scrabble Score

6

Letters

3

Syllables

5

Unique Chars

Meaning

name

A country and archipelago of Polynesia in Oceania. Capital and largest city: Funafuti.

Example Sentences

"Tuvalu, a string of islands northwest of Australia, sold the rights to its suffix, “.tv,” to a Canadian entrepreneur for $50 million, and used the money to put electricity on the outer islands, create scholarships and finance the process to join the United Nations."
"This marks Lin’s [translating 林 (Lín)] third visit to Tuvalu. During a welcome ceremony, Lin said he was pleased to see Prime Minister Feleti Teo and other senior officials and looked forward to reviewing projects showcasing bilateral cooperation."

Etymology

From Tuvaluan Tuuvalu (literally “eight standing together”) in reference to the eight inhabited islands of Tuvalu, although Tuvalu consists of nine islands. The ninth island, Niulakita, was inhabited in 1949. Compare to Proto-Austronesian *walu (“eight”).

Word Breakdown

Root: Tuuvalu

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /tuˈvɑ.lu/
British English: /ˌtuːvəˈluː/

Derived Forms

Tuvaluan

Frequently Paired Words

Funafuti

Rhymes With

you do who new two too you-know-who through few true due talk down to

Questions

How do you pronounce tuvalu?: The recorded pronunciation is /tuˈvɑ.lu/.
What does tuvalu mean?: A country and archipelago of Polynesia in Oceania. Capital and largest city: Funafuti.
Where does tuvalu come from?: From Tuvaluan Tuuvalu (literally “eight standing together”) in reference to the eight inhabited islands of Tuvalu, although Tuvalu consists of nine islands. The ninth island, Niulakita, was inhabited in 1949. Compare to Proto-Austronesian *walu (“eight”).

How to pronounce tuvalu

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