Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

omnishambles

/ˈɒmniˌʃæmbəlz/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.26 in modern English

Syllables: om-nisham-bles
IPA: /ˈɒmniˌʃæmbəlz/

21

Scrabble Score

12

Letters

3

Syllables

10

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A situation that is bad or mismanaged in every way.

British usage; Informal

Example Sentences

"Near-synonyms: clusterfuck, debacle, fiasco, hot mess, perfect storm, shit show, shitstorm"
"Between the car accident, the food poisoning and the lost keys, the holiday was an omnishambles."
"Rail unions also rounded on ministers to intervene in the energy "omnishambles", with ASLEF General Secretary Mick Whelan calling on the Government to "do the right thing for people, the right thing for business, and the right thing for our rail network. Because it is also the right thing for our planet.""

Etymology

From omni- + shambles. Introduced by the television show The Thick of It in 2009.

Word Breakdown

Prefix: omni

Usage

British usage
Informal

Frequently Paired Words

spectacle

Synonyms

clusterfuck debacle fiasco hot mess perfect storm shit show shitstorm

Questions

How do you pronounce omnishambles?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈɒmniˌʃæmbəlz/.
What does omnishambles mean?: A situation that is bad or mismanaged in every way.
Where does omnishambles come from?: From omni- + shambles. Introduced by the television show The Thick of It in 2009.

How to pronounce omnishambles

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