Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

exordium

/ɛɡˈzɔɹdɪəm/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.79 in modern English

Syllables: ex-ordi-um
IPA: /ɛɡˈzɔɹdɪəm/

18

Scrabble Score

8

Letters

3

Syllables

8

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

Formal

noun

The introduction to an essay or discourse.

Example Sentences

"Cicero thinks, in discourses of philosophy, the exordium to be the hardest part: if it be so, I wisely lay hold on the conclusion."
"The depreciation of her produce was next insisted upon; and I found this exordium led to the information that Messrs. Standish and Co. had been enabled, from the depressed state of the market, to lay in a large stock of Irish linen at unheard-of low prices."
"This is a feeble article of faith to begin with, but it helps to push my pen through this exordium and what now follows."

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin exordium (“beginning, commencement”), from exōrdior (“to begin, commence”), from ex (“out of, from”) + ōrdior (“to begin”).

Origin

Source language: Latin

Word Breakdown

Root: exordium

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ɛɡˈzɔɹdɪəm/
British English: /ɛɡˈzɔːdɪəm/

Usage

Formal

Inflected Forms

exordiums (plural) exordia (plural)

Frequently Paired Words

exord primordial primordium

Questions

How do you pronounce exordium?: The recorded pronunciation is /ɛɡˈzɔɹdɪəm/.
What does exordium mean?: A beginning.
Where does exordium come from?: It is traced to Latin.

How to pronounce exordium

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