Pronunciation

How to pronounce “correlation

“correlation” is pronounced /ˌkɔɹəˈleɪʃən/ (kaw-ruh-LAY-shuhn) in American English and /kɒɹɪleɪʃən/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “at”.
The sound

Say “correlation” in 4 beats

Say it like this

correlation

/ˌkɔɹəˈleɪʃən/

The voice you hear here is American; the British form is /kɒɹɪleɪʃən/ (see the table below), and a British voice is available in the app's settings.

4 beats
  1. cor
  2. relɹə
  3. atleɪstress
  4. ionʃən
IPA (American)
/ˌkɔɹəˈleɪʃən/
IPA (British)
/kɒɹɪleɪʃən/
Respelling
kaw-ruh-LAY-shuhn
Syllables
4 — cor-rel-AT-ion
Stress
Stress the third syllable: cor-rel-AT-ion. “at” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Part of speech
noun
Difficulty
Pro — the sounds are ordinary, the rhythm is where it slips
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˌkɔɹəˈleɪʃən/

British

/kɒɹɪleɪʃən/

No audio here: sayit’s voice is American, so a British button would play the American word. Read the transcription instead.

Meaning

What “correlation” means

  1. noun

    a reciprocal relation between two or more things

  2. noun

    a statistic representing how closely two variables co-vary; it can vary from -1 (perfect negative correlation) through 0 (no correlation) to +1 (perfect positive correlation)

    what is the correlation between those two variables?

  3. noun

    a statistical relation between two or more variables such that systematic changes in the value of one variable are accompanied by systematic changes in the other

Say it in a sentence

There is a clear correlation between sleep and test scores.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

8 sounds, in the order you say them

Each sound has its own page: where the tongue goes, what it is usually confused with, and words to drill it on.

Questions

correlation”, answered

How do you pronounce “correlation”?

“correlation” is pronounced /ˌkɔɹəˈleɪʃən/ (kaw-ruh-LAY-shuhn) in American English and /kɒɹɪleɪʃən/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “at”. Build it as cor-rel-AT-ion, then run the third syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “correlation” have?

4: cor · rel · at · ion. The beat lands on the third, “at”.

Is “correlation” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˌkɔɹəˈleɪʃən/ (kaw-ruh-LAY-shuhn); British English says /kɒɹɪleɪʃən/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “correlation” mean?

As a noun: a reciprocal relation between two or more things For example: “There is a clear correlation between sleep and test scores.” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “correlation”?

Stress the third syllable: cor-rel-AT-ion. “at” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “correlation” and see every sound

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