Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

demeanor

/dɪˈminɚ/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.20 in modern English

Syllables: de-mea-nor
IPA: /dɪˈminɚ/

11

Scrabble Score

8

Letters

3

Syllables

7

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

The social, non-verbal behaviors (such as body language and facial expressions) that are characteristic of a person.

American usage; Countable; Uncountable

Example Sentences

"The man's demeanor made others suspicious of his intentions."
"A confident demeanor is crucial for persuading others."
"At this present (saith he) certeine princes of Britaine, procuring by ambassadors and dutifull demeanors the amitie of the emperour Augustus, haue offered in the capitoll vnto the gods presents or gifts, and haue ordeined the whole Ile in a manner to be appertinent, proper, and familiar to the Romans."
"Demeanors that are apologetic and overly polite are inherently contradictory to demeanors that exhibit fear and anger."
"He kept up his cheerful demeanor. It wouldn't do for any of the holocams to see him looking irritable, for any recordings of such a response would appear on the news broadcasts."

Etymology

From Middle English demenure, from the verb Middle English demenen, demeinen (“to handle, manage”), from Old French demener (“to guide, conduct”), from de- + mener (“to conduct, lead”), from Latin *mināre (“to drive”) and minor (“to project or jut forth”).

Origin

Source language: Middle English

Word Breakdown

Root: demenure, demenen, demener, *mināre

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /dɪˈminɚ/
British English: /dɪˈmiːnə(ɹ)/

Usage

Inflected Forms

demeanors (plural) demeanour (alternative, UK)

Frequently Paired Words

demean misdemeanor

Synonyms

behavior comportment demeanour behaviour conduct deportment

Rhymes With

cleaner pasadena misdemeanor greener wiener leaner demeanour meaner keener screener diener treanor

Questions

How do you pronounce demeanor?: The recorded pronunciation is /dɪˈminɚ/.
What does demeanor mean?: The social, non-verbal behaviors (such as body language and facial expressions) that are characteristic of a person.
Where does demeanor come from?: It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce demeanor

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