Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

preposterous

/pɹəˈpɑstəɹəs/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.13 in modern English

Syllables
pre-pos-ter-ous
IPA
/pɹəˈpɑstəɹəs/
16
Scrabble Score
12
Letters
4
Syllables
7
Unique Chars

Meaning

Example Sentences

Etymology

From Latin praeposterus (“with the hinder part before, reversed, inverted, perverted”), from prae (“before”) + posterus (“coming after”).

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /pɹəˈpɑstəɹəs/
  • British English: /pɹɪˈpɒstəɹəs/

Inflected Forms

more preposterous (comparative) most preposterous (superlative) præposterous (alternative, archaic)

Derived Forms

Phrases

Frequently Paired Words

Synonyms

Questions

How do you pronounce preposterous?
The recorded pronunciation is /pɹəˈpɑstəɹəs/.
What does preposterous mean?
Absurd, or contrary to common sense.
Where does preposterous come from?
From Latin praeposterus (“with the hinder part before, reversed, inverted, perverted”), from prae (“before”) + posterus (“coming after”).

How to pronounce preposterous

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