Definition, Meaning & Synonyms

syllabaries

noun

/sɪˈlæb.ər.iz/

Definition

Systems of writing in which characters represent syllables rather than individual phonemes.

Examples

Japanese uses a syllabary called Hiragana.
The Cherokee language has its own syllabary created by Sequoyah.
Syllabaries can be found in various languages around the world.

Meaning

Syllabaries are used to represent the syllables of a language, allowing for the writing of words by combining these syllable symbols. They simplify the representation of sounds compared to alphabetic systems, where individual letters represent single sounds.