Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

letterman

/lˈɛtɚmən/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.16 in modern English

Syllables: let-ter-man
IPA: /lˈɛtɚmən/

11

Scrabble Score

9

Letters

3

Syllables

7

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A student who has attained a specified level of participation in a sporting or other activity, and is awarded a cloth “letter” to be affixed to an item of clothing.

American usage

name

A surname from German.

Example Sentences

"The children seem to catch their enthusiasm from the energetic instructors, ten of them former lettermen at Kansas universities."
"Cousins told the students of their responsibility emphasizing that the sweaters were given them in recognition by the school that they were the “best in the field.” Coach Smith distributed the dark blue slip over sweaters with a gold block T on the front to the lettermen."

Etymology

Etymology tree English letter Proto-Indo-European *mon- Proto-Germanic *mann- Proto-West Germanic *mann Old English mann Middle English man Middle English -man English -man English letterman From letter + -man.

Origin

Source language: German

Word Breakdown

Root: Lettermann

Usage

American usage

Inflected Forms

lettermen (plural) Lettermans (plural)

Derived Forms

Lettermanesque

Phrases

letterman jacket

Rhymes With

fetterman ketterman

Questions

How do you pronounce letterman?: The recorded pronunciation is /lˈɛtɚmən/.
What does letterman mean?: A student who has attained a specified level of participation in a sporting or other activity, and is awarded a cloth “letter” to be affixed to an item of clothing.
Where does letterman come from?: It is traced to German.

How to pronounce letterman

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