How do you pronounce cavernous?

The recorded pronunciation is /ˈkæv.ɚ.nəs/.

Where does cavernous come from?

It is traced to Middle English.

cavernous

/ˈkæv.ɚ.nəs/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: 2.75 in modern English

Syllables: cav-ernous
IPA: /ˈkæv.ɚ.nəs/

Scrabble Score

Letters

Syllables

Unique Chars

Meaning

adj

Resembling a cavern in size, shape, or atmosphere.

adj

Resembling a cavern in size, shape, or atmosphere.

adj

Having many caverns.

adj

Having many caverns.

Example Sentences

"The last stop on the West Coast Main Line before you cross the border into Scotland, the strategically placed Carlisle Citadel is a station steeped in history. Opened on September 1 1847, the cavernous station was once home to seven railway companies in the pre-Grouping years."
"At 8:34 p.m. Saturday night, in the cavernous ballroom at the Washington Hilton, I heard a loud crashing noise, like a big tray of dinner plates hitting the floor."
"cavernous eyes"
"While the filmmakers behind Dear Evan Hansen have maintained that their biggest motivation for adapting the popular Broadway musical was to immortalize Platt’s Tony-winning titular performance, what they’ve actually done by having the 27-year-old play a high school senior is highlight the stage show’s cavernous weaknesses while failing to transport just about any of its strengths to the new medium."

Etymology

Late Middle English cavernous, cavernose, borrowing from Old French caverneux or Latin cavernōsus (“full of hollows or cavities”), from caverna (“a hollow, cavity, cave”) + -ōsus (“-ous, -ose”, adjectival suffix); equivalent to cavern + -ous.

Origin

Source language: Middle English

Word Breakdown

Root: *ḱewh₁-, cavernous, caverneux, cavernōsus
Suffix: cavern

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ˈkæv.ɚ.nəs/
British English: /ˈkav.ən.əs/

Inflected Forms

more cavernous (comparative) most cavernous (superlative)

Derived Forms

bronchocavernous cavernoma cavernously extracavernous intercavernous intracavernous noncavernous paracavernous pericavernous

Phrases

cavernous body cavernous nerve cavernous sinus

Synonyms

cavelike erectile

Rhymes With

bronchocavernous pericavernous