elizabethan
/əˌlɪzəˈbiθ(ə)n/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.03 in modern English
25
Scrabble Score
11
Letters
5
Syllables
9
Unique Chars
Meaning
adj
Pertaining to the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, monarch of England and Ireland, from 1558 to 1603.
adj
Often preceded by new or second: pertaining to the reign of Queen Elizabeth II, monarch of the United Kingdom, from 1952 to 2022.
adj
Pertaining to the reign of Empress Elizabeth of Russia, from 1741 to 1762.
noun
A person (especially a writer) who lived during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, monarch of England and Ireland, from 1558 to 1603.
noun
A person who lived during the reign of Queen Elizabeth II, monarch of the United Kingdom, from 1952 to 2022.
Example Sentences
- "This Elizabethan Era, and all its nobleness and blessedness, came without proclamation, preparation of ours. Priceless Shakspeare^([sic]) was the free gift of Nature; given altogether silently;—received altogether silently, as if it had been a thing of little account. And yet, very literally, it is a priceless thing."
- "Although the potato actually has no exciting value, it was believed, in the seventeenth century, to possess definite aphrodisiac qualities, and is frequent mentioned in this respect in Elizabethan drama."
- "[…] I remember a lady coming to inspect St. Mary's Home where I was brought up and seeing us all in our lovely Elizabethan uniforms we were so proud of, and bursting into tears all over us because "it was wicked to dress us like charity children"."
- "[T]he owners of Doddington Hall, in Lincolnshire, have brought the folly into the 21st century, by building a 30ft pyramid in the grounds of the Elizabethan manor."
- "Some people have expressed the hope that my reign may mark a new Elizabethan age. Frankly I do not myself feel at all like my great Tudor forbear, […] But there is at least one very significant resemblance between her age and mine. For her Kingdom, small though it may have been and poor by comparison with her European neighbours, was yet great in spirit and well endowed with men who were ready to encompass the earth."
- "(The second Elizabethan era, that is. I’m not a maniac.)"
Etymology
From Elizabeth + -an (suffix meaning ‘of or pertaining to’ forming adjectives; and forming agent nouns), referring to Elizabeth I (1533–1603), Elizabeth II (1926–2022), and Elizabeth of Russia (1709–1762).
Word Breakdown
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /əˌlɪzəˈbiθ(ə)n/
- British English: /ɪˌlɪzəˈbiːθ(ə)n/