phonetic alphabet

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noun

an alphabet containing a separate character for each distinguishable speech sound.

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QUIZ YOURSELF ON "WAS" VS. "WERE"!

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Question 1 of 7

“Was” is used for the indicative past tense of “to be,” and “were” is only used for the subjunctive past tense.

true

false

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Origin of phonetic alphabet

First recorded in 1860–65

Words nearby phonetic alphabet

phonesthemic, phonet., phone tag, phonetic, phonetically, phonetic alphabet, phonetician, phoneticize, phonetic law, phonetics, phonetist

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use phonetic alphabet in a sentence

Phonetic, made-up lyrics are another venerable tradition of folk music, and “pa-rum-pa-pa-pum” is iconic of the genre.
Yes, I Like Christmas Music. Stop Laughing.|Michael Tomasky|December 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
“It sometimes seems like we have more contingency plans than there are letters in the alphabet,” he claims.
Lost Ocean Rover Leaves Gap in Biology and Alzheimer's Research|Beenish Ahmed|June 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Best Moment: "I heard your last name was even longer but you ate all the other letters of the alphabet."
Justin Bieber, Jon Hamm & the Best of 'Between Two Ferns' (VIDEO)|Anna Klassen|September 26, 2013|DAILY BEAST
To the left was West Pakistan, where they ruled, and spoke Urdu, and wrote in an alphabet that flowed like water under wind.
Bangladesh’s Midnight Children: Philip Hensher’s ‘Scenes From Early Life’|Lucy Scholes|January 9, 2013|DAILY BEAST

He falls in love with a girl named Zoe, who “seemed to come from that foreign end of the alphabet.”
The New Wallace Stegner: Ivan Doig’s ‘The Bartender’s Tale’|Malcolm Forbes|August 22, 2012|DAILY BEAST
No law of that country must exceed in words the number of letters in their alphabet, which consists only in two-and-twenty.
Gulliver's Travels|Jonathan Swift
If a husband were to see his wife drowning, what single letter of the alphabet would he name?
The Book of Anecdotes and Budget of Fun;|Various
Whatever figure alphabet, however, is used, the main thing about it is to master it thoroughly.
Assimilative Memory|Marcus Dwight Larrowe (AKA Prof. A. Loisette)
If the pupil has mastered the Figure Alphabet he will proceed with the greatest satisfaction and profit.
Assimilative Memory|Marcus Dwight Larrowe (AKA Prof. A. Loisette)
For convenience of reference I now give the figure Alphabet tabulated.
Assimilative Memory|Marcus Dwight Larrowe (AKA Prof. A. Loisette)

British Dictionary definitions for phonetic alphabet

phonetic alphabet

noun

a list of the words used in communications to represent the letters of the alphabet, as in E for Echo, T for Tango

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

phonetic alphabet

Origin of phonetic alphabet

Words nearby phonetic alphabet

Words related to phonetic alphabet

How to use phonetic alphabet in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for phonetic alphabet