Combo

How to spell combo

5 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce combo

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does combo mean?

1. nounAn informal term for a combination of two or more things working together.

Combo in a sentence

• The lunch combo at the cafe includes a sandwich, fries, and a drink.

• That combo of blue paint and white trim looks sharp on the porch.

Where does combo come from?

Language of origin: Latin

Combo is a twentieth-century American shortening of the much older word combination, which itself descends from the Late Latin combinare, meaning 'to join two together', built from the prefix com- 'together' and bini 'two by two'. The clipped form arose in the jazz world of 1930s America, where a 'combo' meant a small instrumental group, literally a combination of a few players. The added -o ending is a casual, affectionate suffix that English uses to turn longer words into snappy slang, much as it does in 'weirdo' and 'ammo'. From music the word spread into everyday speech to describe any handy pairing or set, and fast-food menus later seized on it for a meal that combines several items at one price. The spelling is straightforward once you remember it is simply the first syllables of combination with a friendly -o tacked on.

How the word is built

• clipped form of combination: combo (combin-ation shortened, with -o informal ending)