Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

motel

/moʊˈtɛl/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.61 in modern English

Syllables: mo-tel
IPA: /moʊˈtɛl/

7

Scrabble Score

5

Letters

2

Syllables

5

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A type of hotel or lodging establishment, often located near a major highway, which typically features a series of rooms whose entrances are immediately adjacent to a parking lot to facilitate convenient access to parked automobiles.

noun

A low-cost short-stay hotel, often with hourly rates rather than daily rates, and notorious for permitting illicit sexual activities; a love hotel.

verb

To stay in a motel or motels.

Informal; Intransitive verb

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *m(y)ewh₁- Proto-Indo-European *-yeti Proto-Indo-European *-éyeti Proto-Indo-European *m(y)owh₁éyeti Proto-Italic *moweō Latin moveō Proto-Indo-European *-tōr Proto-Italic *-tōr Latin -tor Latin mōtorder. Middle English motour English motor Proto-Indo-European *gʰóstis Proto-Indo-European *pótis Proto-Indo-European *gʰóstipotis Proto-Italic *hostipotis Latin hospes Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- Proto-Indo-European *-is Proto-Indo-European *h₂élisder.? Proto-Italic *-ālis Latin -ālis Latin hospitālis Old French ostel Middle French hostel French hôtelbor. English hotel blend English motel Blend of motor + hotel, from the original Motel Inn of San Luis Obispo in California, United States, established in 1925 by Arthur Heineman (1878–1974).

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /moʊˈtɛl/

Usage

Inflected Forms

motels (plural) motels (present, singular) motelling (participle, present) motelled (participle, past) motelled (past)

Derived Forms

motelier telly

Phrases

graybar motel hot-sheet motel no-tell motel roach motel motor court tourist court

Frequently Paired Words

hotel inn motor court tourist court

Synonyms

motor hotel

Rhymes With

well tell hell sell hotel cell fell bell el personnel nfl smell

Questions

How do you pronounce motel?: The recorded pronunciation is /moʊˈtɛl/.
What does motel mean?: A type of hotel or lodging establishment, often located near a major highway, which typically features a series of rooms whose entrances are immediately adjacent to a parking lot to facilitate convenient access to parked automobiles.
Where does motel come from?: Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *m(y)ewh₁- Proto-Indo-European *-yeti Proto-Indo-European *-éyeti Proto-Indo-European *m(y)owh₁éyeti Proto-Italic *moweō Latin moveō Proto-Indo-European *-tōr Proto-Italic *-tōr Latin -tor Latin mōtorder. Middle English motour English motor Proto-Indo-European *gʰóstis Proto-Indo-European *pótis Proto-Indo-European *gʰóstipotis Proto-Italic *hostipotis Latin hospes Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- Proto-Indo-European *-is Proto-Indo-European *h₂élisder.? Proto-Italic *-ālis Latin -ālis Latin hospitālis Old French ostel Middle French hostel French hôtelbor. English hotel blend English motel Blend of motor + hotel, from the original Motel Inn of San Luis Obispo in California, United States, established in 1925 by Arthur Heineman (1878–1974).

How to pronounce motel

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “motel”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/moʊˈtɛl/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
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