Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

tantamount

/ˈtæntəˌmaʊnt/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.93 in modern English

Syllables: tan-ta-mount
IPA: /ˈtæntəˌmaʊnt/

12

Scrabble Score

10

Letters

3

Syllables

6

Unique Chars

Meaning

adj

Equivalent in meaning or effect; amounting to the same thing in practical terms, even if being technically distinct.

verb

To amount to as much; to be equivalent.

Intransitive verb; Obsolete

noun

Something which has the same value or amount (as something else). (attributive use passing into adjective, below)

Obsolete

Example Sentences

"Every moment might bring the British cruisers in sight,—two important expeditions had already been baffled in that way,—and the absolute certainty, known to all parties alike, that delay, under these circumstances, was tantamount to ruin; […]"
"[…] expecting the woman to take her attacker into physical custody is tantamount to preventing the arrest. If she could handle him, she probably would not need to call the police in the first place."
"In Bosnia, as in Rwanda, however, passive neutrality was tantamount to complicity with the perpetrators of “ethnic cleansing” and mass murder."
"Russia has said that it considers the weapons and other increased military aid that Western governments are sending to Ukraine tantamount to war, and has implied that it might strike NATO convoys."
"“Defendants’ representations to this Court that Mr. Musk is not running DOGE are tantamount to legal gaslighting,” CREW said."
"[…] and yet this will not tant’amount to an immediate Divine inſtitution for Deacons, and how can it then for Presbyters ?"

Etymology

First attested in English in 1628. Either inherited from an unattested Middle English borrowing from Anglo-Norman tant amount, from amunter, from tant (“as much”) amonter (“to amount to”) or borrowed in the early 17th century from Italian tanto montare (“to amount to as much”).

Word Breakdown

Root: tant amount

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ˈtæntəˌmaʊnt/
British English: /ˈtæntəˌmaʊnt/

Usage

Inflected Forms

more tantamount (comparative) most tantamount (superlative) tantamounts (present, singular) tantamounting (participle, present) tantamounted (participle, past) tantamounted (past) tantamounts (plural)

Synonyms

equivalent

Questions

How do you pronounce tantamount?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈtæntəˌmaʊnt/.
What does tantamount mean?: Equivalent in meaning or effect; amounting to the same thing in practical terms, even if being technically distinct.
Where does tantamount come from?: First attested in English in 1628. Either inherited from an unattested Middle English borrowing from Anglo-Norman tant amount, from amunter, from tant (“as much”) amonter (“to amount to”) or borrowed in the early 17th century from Italian tanto montare (“to amount to as much”).

How to pronounce tantamount

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