Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

nine-day wonder

/ˌnaɪn‿deɪ ˈwʌndɚ/

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.58 in modern English

Syllables: nine-day won-der
IPA: /ˌnaɪn‿deɪ ˈwʌndɚ/

21

Scrabble Score

13

Letters

2

Syllables

9

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

Something that generates interest for a limited time and is then abandoned.

Example Sentences

"[…] I am content this vvinter to haue my doings read for a toye, that in ſommer they may be ready for traſh. It is not ſtraunge vvhen as the greateſt vvonder laſteth but nyne dayes, that a nevve vvorke ſhould not endure but three monethes."
"This that I did vvas for a policie, / To ſmooth and keepe the murther ſecret, / VVhich at a nine daies vvonder being ore-blovvne, / My gentle ſiſter vvill I novv inlarge."
"I vvas ſeuen of the nine daies out of the vvonder, before you came:[…]"
"VVould that vvere the vvorſt: / That vvere but nine dayes vvonder, […]"
"But vvhen the frequent Soule-departing Bell / Has pav'd their eares vvith her familiar knell, / It is reputed but a nine dayes vvonder, / They neither feare the Thund'rer, nor his Thunder; […]"
"The pleasant scandal which arose next day, / The nine days' wonder which was brought to light, / And how Alfonso sued for a divorce, / Were in the English newspapers, of course."

Etymology

From nine + day + wonder (“something that causes amazement or awe”). References to a period of nine days or nights to describe the length of a short-lived fad date from as early as the 14th century; see, for instance, Troilus and Criseyde (c. 1380s) by the English poet Geoffrey Chaucer (c. 1340s – 1400; spelling modernized): “Ek [besides] wonder last but nine days never in town”.

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ˌnaɪn‿deɪ ˈwʌndɚ/
British English: /ˌnaɪn‿deɪ ˈwʌndə/

Inflected Forms

nine-day wonders (plural) nine days' wonder (alternative) nine day wonder (alternative)

Phrases

15 minutes of fame 90-day wonder ninety-day wonder one-hit wonder Seven Wonders of the World

Frequently Paired Words

15 minutes of fame 90-day wonder ninety-day wonder one-hit wonder Seven Wonders of the World

Synonyms

flash in the pan seven-day wonder

Rhymes With

under land under wonder nine days' wonder thunder blunder plunder asunder funder sunder dunder thereunder

Questions

How do you pronounce nine-day wonder?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˌnaɪn‿deɪ ˈwʌndɚ/.
What does nine-day wonder mean?: Something that generates interest for a limited time and is then abandoned.
Where does nine-day wonder come from?: From nine + day + wonder (“something that causes amazement or awe”). References to a period of nine days or nights to describe the length of a short-lived fad date from as early as the 14th century; see, for instance, Troilus and Criseyde (c. 1380s) by the English poet Geoffrey Chaucer (c. 1340s – 1400; spelling modernized): “Ek [besides] wonder last but nine days never in town”.

How to pronounce nine-day wonder

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “nine-day wonder”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˌnaɪn‿deɪ ˈwʌndɚ/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
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