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porcelain

Noun
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

A hard, white, fine ceramic material used for dishes and decorative objects.

Detailed Definition
Porcelain is a type of high-fired ceramic valued for its smooth surface and delicate appearance. In older poetry, it often suggests refinement, luxury, or carefully arranged domestic interiors.
Example
Example in poetry:
“Yet, o’er the piles of porcelain rare,” emphasizes delicacy and luxury; Porcelain’s whiteness can become an image for skin, moonlight, or fragility; “The porcelain cup rang thinly in her hand,” uses the material’s brittleness; A contemporary domestic poem may let broken porcelain symbolize inherited history
Additional Notes
In the line “o’er the piles of porcelain rare,” the word names a specialized material rather than an everyday object, so some readers may need to look it up.; Found in the poem, The Letter by Charlotte Brontë
Also Known As
ceramic china earthenware
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