Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

vanitas

/ˈvæn.ɪˌtɑs/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.90 in modern English

Syllables: van-i-tas
IPA: /ˈvæn.ɪˌtɑs/

10

Scrabble Score

7

Letters

3

Syllables

6

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A type of still life painting, symbolic of mortality, characteristic of Dutch painting of the 16th and 17th centuries.

Example Sentences

"In her straight-ahead photographs of storefronts, an arrangement of shoes or shrink-wrapped furniture becomes a vanitas still life."

Etymology

From Latin vānitās. Doublet of vanity.

Origin

Source language: Latin

Word Breakdown

Root: vānitās

Inflected Forms

vanitases (plural)

Phrases

memento mori

Frequently Paired Words

memento mori

Questions

How do you pronounce vanitas?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈvæn.ɪˌtɑs/.
What does vanitas mean?: A type of still life painting, symbolic of mortality, characteristic of Dutch painting of the 16th and 17th centuries.
Where does vanitas come from?: It is traced to Latin.

How to pronounce vanitas

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