Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

orpheus

/ˈɔɹ.fi.əs/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.87 in modern English

Syllables
or-pheus
IPA
/ˈɔɹ.fi.əs/
12
Scrabble Score
7
Letters
3
Syllables
7
Unique Chars

Meaning

name

A Thracian musician and poet, who failed to retrieve his wife Eurydice from Hades.

name

A male given name from Ancient Greek.

Etymology

From Ancient Greek Ὀρφεύς (Orpheús), built from an uncertain root with the -εύς (-eús) suffix. Perhaps root-cognate to Ancient Greek ὀρφανός (orphanós, “orphan”).

Origin

Word Breakdown

  • Root: Ὀρφεύς

Derived Forms

orpharion Orphic Orphism

Questions

How do you pronounce orpheus?
The recorded pronunciation is /ˈɔɹ.fi.əs/.
What does orpheus mean?
A Thracian musician and poet, who failed to retrieve his wife Eurydice from Hades.
Where does orpheus come from?
It is traced to Ancient Greek.

How to pronounce orpheus

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