Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

ceilidh

/ˈkeɪli/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.22 in modern English

Syllables
ceil-idh-ean
IPA
/ˈkeɪli/
13
Scrabble Score
7
Letters
3
Syllables
6
Unique Chars

Meaning

verb

To attend a ceilidh (noun sense 1).

Intransitive verb

verb

To dance a ceilidh dance.

Intransitive verb

Example Sentences

Etymology

The noun is borrowed from Scottish Gaelic cèilidh (“a pilgrimage; a social call, visit; a sojourn; a social gathering with dancing, etc., ceilidh”) and Irish célidhe (archaic), céilí (“a social call, visit; a social gathering with dancing, etc., ceilidh”), both from Old Irish célide (“social call, visit”), from céile (“companion, fellow; neighbour”) (ultimately from Proto-Celtic *kēiliyos (“companion; servant”), possibly from Proto-Indo-European *ḱey- (“to settle”)) + -ide. The plural form ceilidhean is borrowed from Scottish Gaelic cèilidhean. The verb is derived from the noun.

Origin

Word Breakdown

  • Root: *ḱey-, cèilidh, célidhe, célide, *kēiliyos, cèilidhean

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /ˈkeɪli/
  • British English: /ˈkeɪli/

Usage

Inflected Forms

Derived Forms

Phrases

Homonyms

Rhymes With

Questions

How do you pronounce ceilidh?
The recorded pronunciation is /ˈkeɪli/.
What does ceilidh mean?
An informal social gathering, especially one where traditional Irish or Scottish folk music is played, with dancing and storytelling.
Where does ceilidh come from?
It is traced to Scottish Gaelic.

How to pronounce ceilidh

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