Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

domestique

/dəˌmɛˈstik/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.66 in modern English

Syllables: do-mes-tique
IPA: /dəˌmɛˈstik/

22

Scrabble Score

10

Letters

3

Syllables

9

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A cyclist on a cycle racing team whose role is to assist the team's designated leaders (for example, by riding in front of them to create a slipstream, or to set the pace), even if at the expense of their own individual performance.

Example Sentences

"In a recent poll [Sean] Yates was voted one of the top-10 domestiques of all time, a crucial cog to any leader's Tour ambitions. […] To many casual observers, the role of domestique is not a particularly rewarding one. Yates begs to differ."
"[…] Bram De Groot, a domestique with the Dutch Rabobank team, drops out the back, one arm in the air. The team car responds instantly, swinging out of the line of support vehicles behind the peloton and racing, klaxon sounding, up to De Groot. The window opens and a hand emerges with a bidon (plastic drinks bottle). De Groot places it in his back pocket and the hand emerges with another. This one goes down the back of his shirt, and it is joined by five more. Then off he sprints to deliver them to thirsty team-mates. De Groot is one of the domestiques and this is their lot. They continually drop off, collecting bidons and sprinting back into the peloton with grotesquely bulging shirts."

Etymology

Borrowed from French domestique (“domestic servant, maid”), from domestique (“domestic”, adjective), from Latin domesticus (“of the house, domestic; familiar; native”), from domus (“home, house; place of one's birth or residence, native country”). Doublet of domestic.

Origin

Source language: French

Word Breakdown

Root: *dem-, domestique, domesticus

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /dəˌmɛˈstik/
British English: /ˌdə(ʊ)mɛˈstiːk/

Inflected Forms

domestiques (plural)

Frequently Paired Words

pacemaker

Synonyms

water carrier

Rhymes With

week speak unique weak seek peak greek technique creek leak freak streak

Questions

How do you pronounce domestique?: The recorded pronunciation is /dəˌmɛˈstik/.
What does domestique mean?: A cyclist on a cycle racing team whose role is to assist the team's designated leaders (for example, by riding in front of them to create a slipstream, or to set the pace), even if at the expense of their own individual performance.
Where does domestique come from?: It is traced to French.

How to pronounce domestique

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