Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

february

/ˈfɛb.ɹuˌɛɹi/

Word Rarity Common

Frequency: Zipf frequency 5.03 in modern English

Syllables
Feb-ru-ary
IPA
/ˈfɛb.ɹuˌɛɹi/
16
Scrabble Score
8
Letters
4
Syllables
7
Unique Chars

Meaning

name

A female given name transferred from the month name [in turn from English].

Example Sentences

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *dʰegʷʰ-der. Latin februum Latin Februa Proto-Indo-European *-yósder. Proto-Italic *-āzios Latin -arius Latin Februāriusder. Middle English Februarie English February From Middle English Februarie, februari, februare, from Latin Februārius (“the month of the Februa”), from Februa (“the Purgings, the Purifications”), a Roman holiday two days after its ides (i.e., Feb. 15), + -arius (“-ary: forming adjectives”). Februa from februum (“purging”), from an earlier Sabine [Term?] word, possibly from Proto-Indo-European *dʰewh₂- (“smoke, haze”) and thus cognate with thio- (“sulfurous”) and Ancient Greek θεῖον (theîon, “sulfur”) or from Proto-Indo-European *dʰegʷʰris, an extension of the root *dʰegʷʰ- (“to burn”) and thus cognate with fever and febris. A relatinization abandoning Middle English feoverel, from Old French feverier, which itself displaced Old English solmōnaþ (“mud month”).

Origin

Word Breakdown

  • Root: Februarie, Februārius, *dʰewh₂-, θεῖον, *dʰegʷʰris, feoverel

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /ˈfɛb.ɹuˌɛɹi/
  • British English: /ˈfɛb.ɹʊ.ə.ɹi/

Inflected Forms

Derived Forms

Phrases

Frequently Paired Words

Synonyms

Rhymes With

Questions

How do you pronounce february?
The recorded pronunciation is /ˈfɛb.ɹuˌɛɹi/.
What does february mean?
The short month following January and preceding March in the Roman, Julian, and Gregorian calendars, used in all three calendars for intercalation or addition of leap days.
Where does february come from?
It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce february

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