Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

opprobrium

/əˈpɹoʊ.bɹi.əm/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.11 in modern English

Syllables
op-pro-bri-um
IPA
/əˈpɹoʊ.bɹi.əm/
18
Scrabble Score
10
Letters
4
Syllables
7
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A cause, object, or situation of disgrace or shame.

Archaic; Countable

noun

Disgrace or bad reputation arising from exceedingly shameful behaviour; ignominy.

Countable; Uncountable

noun

Scornful contempt or reproach; (countable) an instance of this.

Countable; Uncountable

noun

Behaviour which is disgraceful or shameful.

Archaic; Countable; Uncountable

Example Sentences

Etymology

PIE word *h₁epi Learned borrowing from Latin opprobrium, obprobrium (“a reproach, a taunt; disgrace, shame; dishonour; scandal”, noun), from opprobrō, obprobrō (“to reproach, upbraid; to taunt”) + -ium (suffix forming abstract nouns). Opprobrō, obprobrō are derived from ob- (prefix meaning ‘towards’) + probrum (“disgrace, shame; abuse, insult”, noun) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *pro- (“forward; toward”) + *bʰer- (“to bear, carry”), in the sense of something brought up to reproach a person). The plural form opprobria is borrowed from Latin opprobria. Cognates * French opprobre * Italian obbrobrio * Portuguese ouprobio (obsolete), opróbrio * Spanish oprobrio (obsolete), oprobio

Origin

Word Breakdown

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /əˈpɹoʊ.bɹi.əm/
  • British English: /əˈpɹəʊ.bɹɪ.əm/

Usage

Inflected Forms

Frequently Paired Words

Synonyms

Questions

How do you pronounce opprobrium?
The recorded pronunciation is /əˈpɹoʊ.bɹi.əm/.
What does opprobrium mean?
A cause, object, or situation of disgrace or shame.
Where does opprobrium come from?
It is traced to Proto-Indo-European.

How to pronounce opprobrium

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “opprobrium”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/əˈpɹoʊ.bɹi.əm/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
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