Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

orichalcum

/ɒɹɪˈkælkəm/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.35 in modern English

Syllables: orichal-cum
IPA: /ɒɹɪˈkælkəm/

19

Scrabble Score

10

Letters

2

Syllables

9

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A valuable yellow metal known to the Ancient Greeks and Romans; now sometimes interpreted as referring to a natural alloy of gold and copper, and sometimes treated as a mythical substance.

Uncountable

Example Sentences

"Many walls were coated with metals – with brass, tin and a red ^([sic]) metal, unknown to us, called orichalcum."

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Latin orichalcum, itself a borrowing from Ancient Greek ὀρείχαλκος (oreíkhalkos), from dative singular of ὄρος (óros, “mountain”) + χαλκός (khalkós, “copper”).

Origin

Source language: Ancient Greek

Word Breakdown

Root: ὀρείχαλκος

Regional Pronunciation

British English: /ɒɹɪˈkælkəm/

Usage

Uncountable

Inflected Forms

aurichalchum (alternative) aurichalcum (alternative) orichalc (alternative) orichalch (alternative) orichalchum (alternative)

Questions

How do you pronounce orichalcum?: The recorded pronunciation is /ɒɹɪˈkælkəm/.
What does orichalcum mean?: A valuable yellow metal known to the Ancient Greeks and Romans; now sometimes interpreted as referring to a natural alloy of gold and copper, and sometimes treated as a mythical substance.
Where does orichalcum come from?: It is traced to Ancient Greek.

How to pronounce orichalcum

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