Standard Lemma guide

phenakistoscope

noun · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • /ˌfɛnəˈkɪstəskəʊp/
  • /ˌfiːnəˈkɪstəskəʊp/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

noun

Meaning 1

An early animation device consisting of a disc or drum which rotated, showing successive images through slits, often via a mirror, thus producing the illusion of motion.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

From French phénakistiscope, from Ancient Greek φενακιστής (phenakistḗs, “cheat, imposter”) + French -scope.

Across languages

Translations

4 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: قُرْصُ المُصْطَرِبَة (qurṣu l-muṣṭariba) — Translations
  • French: phénakistiscope — Translations
  • German: Phenakistiskop — Translations
  • Spanish: fenaquistoscopio — Translations