rote

Plural: rotes

Noun

memorization by repetition
Mechanical routine; a fixed, habitual, repetitive, or mechanical course of procedure.
The roar of the surf; the sound of waves breaking on the shore.
A kind of guitar, the notes of which were produced by a small wheel or wheel-like arrangement; an instrument similar to the hurdy-gurdy.
Synonym of crowd.
pl. -S mechanical routine

Adj

By repetition or practice and without much thought.

Verb

To go out by rotation or succession; to rotate.
To learn or repeat by rote.

Examples

"He could perform by rote any of his roles in Shakespeare."
"The pastoral scenes from those commercials don’t bear too much resemblance to the rote of daily life on a farm."

Origin / Etymology

From Middle English rote (“custom, habit, wont, condition, state”), further origin unknown. Found in the Middle English phrase bi rote (“by heart, according to form, expertly”), c. 1300. Some have proposed a relationship either with Old French rote/rute (“route”), or Latin rota (“wheel”) (see rotary), but the OED calls both suggestions groundless. Another explanation might be the metaphorical comparison between anything repetitive and playing the rote.

Synonyms

rote learning, crowd, roteness

Scrabble Score: 4

rote: valid Scrabble (US) TWL word
rote: valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
rote: valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 4

rote is a valid Words With Friends word