Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

waterloo

/ˌwɔtɚˈluː/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.52 in modern English

Syllables: Wa-ter-loo
IPA: /ˌwɔtɚˈluː/

11

Scrabble Score

8

Letters

3

Syllables

7

Unique Chars

Meaning

name

A village in Walloon Brabant, Belgium; the site of a major military battle in 1815.

name

A battle fought at Waterloo, Belgium on June 18, 1815, resulting in the epic, final defeat of Napoleon Bonaparte.

name

The name of any of several villages, towns, and cities around the world.

name

The name of any of several villages, towns, and cities around the world.

name

The name of any of several villages, towns, and cities around the world.

name

The name of any of several villages, towns, and cities around the world.

name

The name of any of several villages, towns, and cities around the world.

name

The name of any of several villages, towns, and cities around the world.

Example Sentences

"He flung his dime at a newsboy, got his Express, propped his back against the truck, and was at once rapt in the account of his Waterloo as expanded by the ingenious press."
"Surprisingly, Greenfield did not meet his Waterloo in this showdown with his competitors."
"The skull ended up as Dubois’ personal Waterloo. His work received nothing but rejection and derision throughout the next decade, and the bones became dark secrets for much of the early twentieth century, locked away in Dubois’ home, unavailable for study by other scholars."

Etymology

From Middle Dutch, composed of water (“water”) + loo (“sacred wood, forest”). More at water, lea. cf. German Loh. Most places in English-speaking countries are named for the battle.

Word Breakdown

Root: -

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ˌwɔtɚˈluː/
British English: /ˌwɔːtəˈluː/

Inflected Forms

Waterloos (plural)

Derived Forms

Bakerloo

Phrases

meet one's Waterloo

Synonyms

Battle of Waterloo

Rhymes With

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

Questions

How do you pronounce waterloo?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˌwɔtɚˈluː/.
What does waterloo mean?: A village in Walloon Brabant, Belgium; the site of a major military battle in 1815.
Where does waterloo come from?: From Middle Dutch, composed of water (“water”) + loo (“sacred wood, forest”). More at water, lea. cf. German Loh. Most places in English-speaking countries are named for the battle.

How to pronounce waterloo

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