Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

kopitiam

/ˈkɒpɪˌtiːəm/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.41 in modern English

Syllables
ko-pi-ti-am
IPA
/ˈkɒpɪˌtiːəm/
16
Scrabble Score
8
Letters
4
Syllables
7
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A traditional style of eatery having public seating and multiple vendors selling Chinese, Indian, and Malay food.

Example Sentences

Etymology

Borrowed from Malay kopitiam, from Hokkien 咖啡店 (ko-pi-tiàm), in turn from Malay kopi (“coffee”).

Word Breakdown

Regional Pronunciation

  • British English: /ˈkɒpɪˌtiːəm/

Inflected Forms

kopitiams (plural) kopi tiam (alternative)

Questions

How do you pronounce kopitiam?
The recorded pronunciation is /ˈkɒpɪˌtiːəm/.
What does kopitiam mean?
A traditional style of eatery having public seating and multiple vendors selling Chinese, Indian, and Malay food.
Where does kopitiam come from?
Borrowed from Malay kopitiam, from Hokkien 咖啡店 (ko-pi-tiàm), in turn from Malay kopi (“coffee”).

How to pronounce kopitiam

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