Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

caliginous

/kəˈlɪd͡ʒənəs/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 0.00 in modern English

Syllables: ca-li-gin-ous
IPA: /kəˈlɪd͡ʒənəs/

13

Scrabble Score

10

Letters

4

Syllables

9

Unique Chars

Meaning

adj

Dark, obscure; murky.

Archaic; Literary

Example Sentences

"Hierapolis is ſeated over-againſt Laodicea, where are to be ſeen baths of hot waters, and the Plutonium. [...] The Plutonium is under the brow of the hill, the entrance into which is no wider than that a man can thruſt himſelf through; yet it is very deep within, of a quadrangular form, containing about the compaſs of half an acre, and is filled with ſuch a thick and caliginous air, that the ground cannot be ſeen."
"By the time breakfast was announced, the land had faded into a thin caliginous streak; and, except passing a huge unwieldy Chinese junk, which lay at anchor, though her lateen sails were hoisted, nothing worthy of note occurred during the day."
"Inside the atmosphere was rank and caliginous: fumes rose from puddles, groans sifted through the shadows."
"They say the darkest hour is just before the dawn, and caliginous thoughts often swirled through his murky, insomniac mind as he lay awake [...]"

Etymology

Borrowed from Middle French caligineux (“misty; obscure”), or directly from its Latin etymon cālīginōsus (“misty; dark, obscure”). Cālīginōsus is derived from cālīgō, cālīginis (“fog, mist, vapour; darkness, gloom”)) + -ōsus (suffix meaning ‘full of, prone to’ forming adjectives from nouns).

Origin

Source language: Middle French

Word Breakdown

Root: caligineux, -

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /kəˈlɪd͡ʒənəs/
British English: /kəˈlɪdʒɪnəs/

Usage

Inflected Forms

more caliginous (comparative) most caliginous (superlative)

Derived Forms

caliginosity caliginously caliginousness

Frequently Paired Words

caligation caligo

Synonyms

adumbral blear caliginous cimmerian crepuscular dark darksome darkling dim dimpsy dingy dull

Antonyms

aglow alight beamful beamsome beamy brilliant effulgent glowing illuminating lambent lighted lit

Rhymes With

indigenous

Questions

How do you pronounce caliginous?: The recorded pronunciation is /kəˈlɪd͡ʒənəs/.
What does caliginous mean?: Dark, obscure; murky.
Where does caliginous come from?: It is traced to Middle French.

How to pronounce caliginous

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “caliginous”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/kəˈlɪd͡ʒənəs/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
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