Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

detergent

/dɪˈtɝd͡ʒənt/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.20 in modern English

Syllables
de-ter-gent
IPA
/dɪˈtɝd͡ʒənt/
11
Scrabble Score
9
Letters
3
Syllables
6
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

Any non-soap cleaning agent, especially a synthetic surfactant.

Countable; Uncountable

adj

Synonym of cleansing.

Example Sentences

Etymology

From French détergent, from Latin dētergēns, the present participle of dētergeō, from dē (“off”) + tergeō (“wipe, polish”).

Origin

Word Breakdown

  • Root: détergent, dētergēns

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /dɪˈtɝd͡ʒənt/
  • British English: /dɪˈtɜːd͡ʒənt/

Usage

Inflected Forms

detergents (plural) more detergent (comparative) most detergent (superlative)

Derived Forms

detergentless nondetergent zwittergent

Phrases

anionic detergent cationic detergent dish detergent dishwasher detergent

Frequently Paired Words

manuterge manutergium surfactant soap[Appendix:Glossary

Synonyms

cleaner cleansing detersive

Rhymes With

urgent divergent insurgent emergent convergent resurgent sergent neurodivergent surgent abstergent assurgent turgent

Questions

How do you pronounce detergent?
The recorded pronunciation is /dɪˈtɝd͡ʒənt/.
What does detergent mean?
Any non-soap cleaning agent, especially a synthetic surfactant.
Where does detergent come from?
It is traced to French.

How to pronounce detergent

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