Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

false start

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.58 in modern English

Syllables: false s-tart
IPA

13

Scrabble Score

10

Letters

2

Syllables

7

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

The act of an athlete starting a race before being signaled to do so.

noun

The act of an offensive player moving across the line of scrimmage prior to the snap.

noun

An attempt at something that does not work, requiring one to start over.

Example Sentences

"After a "false start" that was too vigorous, overloading the motors, No. D171 made a very successful unassisted run from Tyne Dock to Consett."
"He spent nearly 20 years developing the movie, keeping at it through false starts and heartbreaking dead ends. And when he got the chance to make it, he went all in, devising entire societies full of baroquely souped-up death machines and screaming war-cults."

Inflected Forms

false starts (plural)

Synonyms

jump-start flyer

Questions

What does false start mean?: The act of an athlete starting a race before being signaled to do so.

How to pronounce false start

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