Pronunciation

How to pronounce “examination

“examination” is pronounced /ɪɡˌzæməˈneɪʃən/ (ig-za-muh-NAY-shuhn) in American English and /ɛɡzamɪneɪʃən/ in British English — 5 syllables, stressed on “at”.
The sound

Say “examination” in 5 beats

Say it like this

examination

/ɪɡˌzæməˈneɪʃən/

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

5 beats
  1. exɪɡ
  2. am
  3. in
  4. atneɪstress
  5. ionʃən
IPA (American)
/ɪɡˌzæməˈneɪʃən/
IPA (British)
/ɛɡzamɪneɪʃən/
Respelling
ig-za-muh-NAY-shuhn
Syllables
5 — ex-am-in-AT-ion
Stress
Stress the fourth syllable: ex-am-in-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

/ɪɡˌzæməˈneɪʃən/

British

/ɛɡzamɪneɪʃən/

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

Meaning

What “examination” means

  1. noun

    the act of examining something closely (as for mistakes)

  2. noun

    a set of questions or exercises evaluating skill or knowledge

    when the test was stolen the professor had to make a new set of questions

  3. noun

    formal systematic questioning

Say it in a sentence

The examination lasts three hours with one short break.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

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

Questions

examination”, answered

How do you pronounce “examination”?

“examination” is pronounced /ɪɡˌzæməˈneɪʃən/ (ig-za-muh-NAY-shuhn) in American English and /ɛɡzamɪneɪʃən/ in British English — 5 syllables, stressed on “at”. Build it as ex-am-in-AT-ion, then run the fourth syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “examination” have?

5: ex · am · in · at · ion. The beat lands on the fourth, “at”.

Is “examination” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ɪɡˌzæməˈneɪʃən/ (ig-za-muh-NAY-shuhn); British English says /ɛɡzamɪneɪʃən/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “examination” mean?

As a noun: the act of examining something closely (as for mistakes) For example: “The examination lasts three hours with one short break.” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “examination”?

Stress the fourth syllable: ex-am-in-AT-ion. “at” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “examination” and see every sound

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