Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

anencephaly

/æn.ɪnˈsɛ.fə.lɪ/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: 1.77 in modern English

Syllables
anen-cephaly
IPA
/æn.ɪnˈsɛ.fə.lɪ/
21
Scrabble Score
11
Letters
5
Syllables
8
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A lethal birth defect involving the abscence of a major portion of the brain and parts of the skull are missing; absence of the encephalon.

Etymology

Internationalism. Learned borrowing from New Latin anencephalia. By surface analysis, an- + encephaly.

Regional Pronunciation

  • British English: /æn.ɪnˈsɛ.fə.lɪ/

Inflected Forms

anencephalies (plural) anencephalia (alternative)

Derived Forms

hydranencephaly

Frequently Paired Words

anencephalic anencephaloid anencephalous anencephalus

Synonyms

anencephalus anencephalia

Rhymes With

microcephaly lissencephaly macrocephaly plagiocephaly holoprosencephaly acephaly trigonocephaly dicephaly megalocephaly megalocephalia

Questions

How do you pronounce anencephaly?
The recorded pronunciation is /æn.ɪnˈsɛ.fə.lɪ/.
What does anencephaly mean?
A lethal birth defect involving the abscence of a major portion of the brain and parts of the skull are missing; absence of the encephalon.
Where does anencephaly come from?
Internationalism. Learned borrowing from New Latin anencephalia. By surface analysis, an- + encephaly.

How to pronounce anencephaly

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