Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

quidnunc

/ˈkwɪdˌnʌŋk/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 0.00 in modern English

Syllables: quid-nunc
IPA: /ˈkwɪdˌnʌŋk/

20

Scrabble Score

8

Letters

2

Syllables

6

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A person eager to learn news and scandal.

Archaic

Example Sentences

"The College Sloven, or embroidered Spark, The purple Prelate, or the parish Clerk, The quiet Quidnunc, or demanding Prig, The plaintiff Tory, or defendant Whig;"
"We all did our duty, which, in the patriot's, soldier's, and gentleman's language, is a very comprehensive word, of great honour, meaning, and import, and of which the generality of idle quidnuncs and coffee-house politicians can hardly form any but a very mean and contemptible idea."
"[…] but still something was necessary to convince the community at large, to quiet those praying quidnuncs who should come after them--in short, the world must be satisfied."

Etymology

From Latin quid nunc? (“what now?”).

Origin

Source language: Latin

Word Breakdown

Root: quid nunc?

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ˈkwɪdˌnʌŋk/
British English: /ˈkwɪdˌnʌŋk/

Usage

Archaic

Inflected Forms

quidnuncs (plural)

Derived Forms

quidnuncery quidnunctious

Synonyms

busybody buttinsky gossip newsmonger yenta nosy-parker nosey-parker

Questions

How do you pronounce quidnunc?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈkwɪdˌnʌŋk/.
What does quidnunc mean?: A person eager to learn news and scandal.
Where does quidnunc come from?: It is traced to Latin.

How to pronounce quidnunc

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “quidnunc”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈkwɪdˌnʌŋk/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
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