Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

epiglottis

/ˌɛp.ɪˈɡlɑ.tɪs/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: 1.89 in modern English

Syllables
epiglot-tis
IPA
/ˌɛp.ɪˈɡlɑ.tɪs/
13
Scrabble Score
10
Letters
2
Syllables
8
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A cartilaginous organ in the throat of terrestrial vertebrates covering the glottis when swallowing to prevent food and liquid from entering the trachea, and in Homo sapiens also a speech organ.

Example Sentences

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₁ep-der. Proto-Indo-European *h₁épsder. Proto-Indo-European *h₁épi Proto-Hellenic *epí Ancient Greek ἐπί (epí) Ancient Greek ἐπῐ- (epĭ-) Proto-Hellenic *glṓt͏̌t͏̌ā Ancient Greek γλῶσσᾰ (glôssă) Pre-Greekder. Ancient Greek -ις (-is) Ancient Greek γλωσσῐ́ς (glōssĭ́s) Ancient Greek ἐπῐγλωσσῐ́ς (epĭglōssĭ́s) Ancient Greek ἐπῐγλωττῐ́ς (epĭglōttĭ́s)bor. New Latin epiglōttislbor. English epiglottis Borrowed from New Latin epiglōttis, from Ancient Greek ἐπῐγλωττῐ́ς (epĭglōttĭ́s, “valve covering the larynx”), from ἐπῐ- (epĭ-, “upon, over”) + γλωττῐ́ς (glōttĭ́s, “glottis, mouth of the windpipe”); equivalent to epi- (“upon; above”) + glottis.

Origin

Word Breakdown

  • Root: epiglōttis, ἐπῐγλωττῐ́ς

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /ˌɛp.ɪˈɡlɑ.tɪs/
  • British English: /ˌɛp.ɪˈɡlɒt.ɪs/

Inflected Forms

epiglottises (plural) epiglottides (plural)

Derived Forms

epiglottal epiglottic epiglottidean epiglottidectomy epiglottitis

Phrases

epiglotto-

Frequently Paired Words

glottis

Rhymes With

glottis proglottis supraglottis subglottis

Questions

How do you pronounce epiglottis?
The recorded pronunciation is /ˌɛp.ɪˈɡlɑ.tɪs/.
What does epiglottis mean?
A cartilaginous organ in the throat of terrestrial vertebrates covering the glottis when swallowing to prevent food and liquid from entering the trachea, and in Homo sapiens also a speech organ.
Where does epiglottis come from?
It is traced to Ancient Greek.

How to pronounce epiglottis

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