Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

opossum

/əˈpɑsəm/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.47 in modern English

Syllables
o-pos-sum
IPA
/əˈpɑsəm/
11
Scrabble Score
7
Letters
3
Syllables
5
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

Any American marsupial of the family Didelphidae in the order Didelphimorphia.

Etymology

From Powhatan aposoum (“white animal”), from Proto-Algonquian *wa·p-aʔθemwa (“white dog”); compare Ojibwe waabasim (“white dog”).

Word Breakdown

  • Root: aposoum, *wa·p-aʔθemwa

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /əˈpɑsəm/
  • British English: /əˈpɒsəm/

Inflected Forms

opossums (plural)

Phrases

colocolo opossum eastern opossum gray short-tailed opossum mouse opossum opossum mouse opossum rat opossum shrimp opossum wood

Frequently Paired Words

yapok

Synonyms

didelphid possum phalanger

Rhymes With

awesome blossom possum fossum

Questions

How do you pronounce opossum?
The recorded pronunciation is /əˈpɑsəm/.
What does opossum mean?
Any American marsupial of the family Didelphidae in the order Didelphimorphia.
Where does opossum come from?
From Powhatan aposoum (“white animal”), from Proto-Algonquian *wa·p-aʔθemwa (“white dog”); compare Ojibwe waabasim (“white dog”).

How to pronounce opossum

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