Ossining

O1S1S1I1N1I1N1G2
US/ˈɑsɪnɪŋ/UK/ˈɒsɪnɪŋ/

proper noun

A town and village in Westchester County, New York, the village is the site of Sing Sing prison.

OriginDutch Sintsing ← Munsee *ăsúnchung ← Proto-Algonquian *aʔsenya →
UncommonScrabble 9
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Meanings

proper noun
  1. A town and village in Westchester County, New York, the village is the site of Sing Sing prison.

Origin

  1. Proto-Algonquian*aʔsenya
  2. Munsee*ăsúnchung
  3. DutchSintsing
  4. EnglishOssining

From earlier Ossingsing, named for the nearby Sing Sing Kill, borrowed from Dutch Sintsing, Sintsinck, from Munsee *ăsúnchung (*ăsə́nčəng), *ăshúnshung (*ăšə́nšəng, “at the small stone”), ăsún (ăsə́n, “stone”) + -ush (-əš, diminutive suffix) + -ung (-əng, locative suffix), from Proto-Algonquian *aʔsenya. The prison located on the site retains the older form of the name, Sing Sing.

More words from Dutch, Munsee, Proto-Algonquian

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

Ossining. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Ossining

MLA

“Ossining.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Ossining. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Ossining,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Ossining.

Source: Ossining on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.