Home › Glossary › Letter Y

Yorktown

Battles
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

Want to hear it? Click the Listen button to hear the browser speak the word using text-to-speech!

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

The 1781 siege where American and French forces trapped Cornwallis, effectively ending the Revolutionary War.

Detailed Definition
Yorktown secured American independence and showcased Franco-American cooperation. In poetry, it symbolizes the triumph of perseverance and international alliance—appearing in American and French verse as a moment when trenches, fleets, and shared ideals converged to birth a nation, transforming a Virginia field into the cradle of republican hope and global revolution.
Example
Example in poetry:
Yorktown, 1781 siege, appears in American poetry as birth cry of a nation; A modern sonnet might frame Yorktown’s fields as where Washington and Rochambeau closed the trap; In a dramatic monologue, a Virginia slave recalls British promises of freedom at Yorktown; A free-verse elegy could mourn the Hessians and redcoats buried in Yorktown’s soil; Contemporary poets use Yorktown to reflect on alliance and independence; A haiku might capture dogwoods blooming over Yorktown’s silent ramparts.
Additional Notes
Yorktown (1781) trapped Cornwallis through Franco-American coordination, effectively ending the Revolutionary War; in American and French poetry, it symbolizes alliance, siegecraft, and the birth of a republic—often contrasted with earlier defeats to illustrate the arc of revolutionary perseverance.
Also Known As
Siege of Yorktown Battle of Yorktown
Skip to main content