Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

defensiveness

/dɪˈfɛnsɪvnəs/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.37 in modern English

Syllables: de-fen-sive-ness
IPA: /dɪˈfɛnsɪvnəs/

20

Scrabble Score

13

Letters

4

Syllables

7

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

The state or quality of being defensive.

Uncountable

Example Sentences

"The gay vs. straight confrontation has been dealt with before in movies and plays but never with the gay character in control and never so free of defensiveness or homosexual guilt."

Etymology

Etymology tree English defensive Proto-Germanic *-inōną Proto-Indo-European *-dyé- Proto-Germanic *-atjaną Proto-Indo-European *-tus Proto-Germanic *-þuz Proto-Germanic *-assuz Proto-Germanic *-inassuz Proto-West Germanic *-nassī Old English -nes Middle English -nesse English -ness English defensiveness From defensive + -ness.

Regional Pronunciation

British English: /dɪˈfɛnsɪvnəs/

Usage

Uncountable

Inflected Forms

defensivenesses (plural)

Questions

How do you pronounce defensiveness?: The recorded pronunciation is /dɪˈfɛnsɪvnəs/.
What does defensiveness mean?: The state or quality of being defensive.
Where does defensiveness come from?: Etymology tree English defensive Proto-Germanic *-inōną Proto-Indo-European *-dyé- Proto-Germanic *-atjaną Proto-Indo-European *-tus Proto-Germanic *-þuz Proto-Germanic *-assuz Proto-Germanic *-inassuz Proto-West Germanic *-nassī Old English -nes Middle English -nesse English -ness English defensiveness From defensive + -ness.

How to pronounce defensiveness

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