cinnabar
/ˈsɪn.əˌbɑɹ/noun, adjective
cinnabar is spelled C-I-N-N-A-B-A-R: 8 letters and 3 syllables. It appears about once in every 6 million words in written English, the 72,332nd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, cinnabar means “A deep red mineral, mercuric sulfide, HgS; the principal ore of mercury; such ore used as the pigment vermilion” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of cinnabar is cinnabars.
How many letters and syllables are in cinnabar?
| Letters | 8: C-I-N-N-A-B-A-R |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 6 million words; the 72,332nd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is cinnabar?
Cinnabar appears about once in every 6 million words in written English, the 72,332nd most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce cinnabar?
- /ˈsɪn.əˌbɑɹ/
- UK /ˈsɪn.əˌbɑː(ɹ)/
- US /ˈsɪn.əˌbɑɹ/
Cinnabar has 3 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-cinnabar.wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Aadenboy-cinnabar.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of cinnabar
- cinnabars plural
- more cinnabar comparative
- most cinnabar superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does cinnabar mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
A deep red mineral, mercuric sulfide, HgS; the principal ore of mercury; such ore used as the pigment vermilion.
- 2
A bright red colour tinted with orange.
- 3
A species of erebid moth, Tyria jacobaeae, having red patches on its predominantly black wings.
- 4
Synonym of dragon's blood (“type of resin”).
adjective
- 1
Of a bright red colour tinted with orange.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Cinnabar in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense mineral:
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does cinnabar come from?
First attested in the mid-15th century. From Middle English cynabare, from Old French cinabre, from Latin cinnabaris, from Ancient Greek κιννάβαρι (kinnábari), of unknown origin.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).