Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

kanak

/kəˈnæk/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.83 in modern English

Syllables: kanak
IPA: /kəˈnæk/

13

Scrabble Score

5

Letters

2

Syllables

3

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

An indigenous Melanesian inhabitant of New Caledonia.

name

A female given name from Sanskrit used in India.

Example Sentences

"In the working-class districts of Nouméa, which have a high population of indigenous Kanak residents, buildings were burned and wrecked vehicles remained in the middle of the road."

Etymology

First attested in 1910, borrowed from French canaque, from English kanaka (“Pacific islander”), from Hawaiian kanaka (“person”).

Origin

Source language: French

Word Breakdown

Root: canaque, kanaka

Inflected Forms

Kanaks (plural) Canaque (alternative)

Frequently Paired Words

Canuck Kanaky Kaneka Kanéka

Homonyms

canaque

Rhymes With

banach cannock rappahannock manak janak brannock jannock

Questions

How do you pronounce kanak?: The recorded pronunciation is /kəˈnæk/.
What does kanak mean?: An indigenous Melanesian inhabitant of New Caledonia.
Where does kanak come from?: It is traced to French.

How to pronounce kanak

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