cicerone
/t͡ʃɪt͡ʃəˈɹəʊni/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.79 in modern English
12
Scrabble Score
8
Letters
3
Syllables
6
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A guide who accompanies visitors and sightseers to museums, galleries, etc., and explains matters of archaeological, antiquarian, historic or artistic interest.
Example Sentences
- "East, still doing the cicerone, pointed out all the remarkable characters to Tom as they passed[…]"
- "he was in the act of making his evening plans with the same smelly but nice cicerone in a café-au-lait suit whom he had hired already twice at the same Genoese hotel [...]."
- "Ultimately their gazes all rested on his cicerone as most powerful member of the group."
- "“First,” advised their cicerone in the matter, Professor Svegli of the University of Pisa, “try to forget the usual picture in two dimensions.”"
- "Accordingly, as three o'clock struck, six dashing-looking light dragoons were seen slowly sauntering up the dining-hall, escorted by Webber, who, in full academic costume, was leisurely ciceroning his friends and expatiating upon the excellences of the very remarkable portraits which graced the walls."
Etymology
1726, from Italian cicerone (surface analysis cicero + -one (augmentative)), from Latin Cicerōnem, form of Cicerō, agnomen of Marcus Tullius Cicero), the Roman orator, from cicer (“chickpea”) from Proto-Indo-European *ḱiker- (“pea”). Possibly humorous reference to loquaciousness of guides.
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: cicerone, Cicerōnem, *ḱiker-
Regional Pronunciation
- British English: /t͡ʃɪt͡ʃəˈɹəʊni/