Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

ash wednesday

/æʃ wɛnz.dɛɪ/

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.02 in modern English

Syllables
ash wednes-day
IPA
/æʃ wɛnz.dɛɪ/
23
Scrabble Score
12
Letters
2
Syllables
8
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

The Wednesday 46 days before Easter in a given year, (Catholicism) traditionally observed as the beginning of Lent and a day of strict abstention from certain foods and pleasures.

noun

A cocktail made from a mix of gin, heavy cream, honey syrup, and blackberries

Example Sentences

Etymology

From Middle English Aschewednysday, Axwednesdai, from asshe, axe (“ash”) + Wednesdai, Wednysday (“Wednesday”), from the custom of using the blessed ashes of the previous year's palm fronds (cf. Palm Sunday) to mark the heads of the congregation on the day. By surface analysis, ash + Wednesday.

Origin

Word Breakdown

  • Root: Aschewednysday

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /æʃ wɛnz.dɛɪ/

Inflected Forms

Ash Wednesdays (plural) Ashwednesday (alternative) Ash-Wednesday (alternative)

Phrases

Ash Monday

Questions

How do you pronounce ash wednesday?
The recorded pronunciation is /æʃ wɛnz.dɛɪ/.
What does ash wednesday mean?
The Wednesday 46 days before Easter in a given year, (Catholicism) traditionally observed as the beginning of Lent and a day of strict abstention from certain foods and pleasures.
Where does ash wednesday come from?
It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce ash wednesday

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