Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

kairos

/ˈkaɪɹɒs/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.18 in modern English

Syllables: kairos
IPA: /ˈkaɪɹɒs/

10

Scrabble Score

6

Letters

1

Syllables

6

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A time when conditions are right for the accomplishment of a crucial action; the opportune and decisive moment.

Example Sentences

"The—so-called! friends—rational world. If only they, Mom&Dad&Buddy&Sis, dear-but-square ones, could but know the kairos, the supreme moment…"
"Kairos is not measurable. Kairos is ontological. In kairos we are, we are fully in isness, not negatively, as Sartre saw the isness of the oak tree, but fully, wholly, positively."
"It is a confrontation and invasion of the eternal into the temporal, what Paul Tillich also refers to in the biblical term kairos as distinguished from chronos or common linear time. Kairos is time qualified by eternal relevance, time that is of significance to the Eternal because it is disturbed by and invested with the eternal."

Etymology

Borrowed from Ancient Greek καιρός (kairós).

Inflected Forms

kairoi (plural) kairós (alternative)

Derived Forms

kairotic

Frequently Paired Words

decorum aptum aedium chronos

Questions

How do you pronounce kairos?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈkaɪɹɒs/.
What does kairos mean?: A time when conditions are right for the accomplishment of a crucial action; the opportune and decisive moment.
Where does kairos come from?: Borrowed from Ancient Greek καιρός (kairós).

How to pronounce kairos

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