Pronunciation

How to pronounce “operations

“operations” is pronounced /ˌɑpɚˈeɪʃənz/ (ah-puh-AY-shuhnz) in American English and /ɒpəɹeɪʃənz/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “at”.
The sound

Say “operations” in 4 beats

Say it like this

operations

/ˌɑpɚˈeɪʃənz/

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

4 beats
  1. opɑ
  2. er
  3. atstress
  4. ionsʃənz
IPA (American)
/ˌɑpɚˈeɪʃənz/
IPA (British)
/ɒpəɹeɪʃənz/
Respelling
ah-puh-AY-shuhnz
Syllables
4 — op-er-AT-ions
Stress
Stress the third syllable: op-er-AT-ions. “at” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Part of speech
noun
Difficulty
Beginner — most learners get this on the first take
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ˌɑpɚˈeɪʃənz/

British

/ɒpəɹeɪʃənz/

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

Meaning

What “operations” means

  1. noun

    financial transactions at a brokerage; having to do with the execution of trades and keeping customer records

  2. noun

    the state of being in effect or being operative

    that rule is no longer in operation

  3. noun

    a business especially one run on a large scale

    a large-scale farming operation

Say it in a sentence

The factory paused operations during the holiday week.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

7 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

operations”, answered

How do you pronounce “operations”?

“operations” is pronounced /ˌɑpɚˈeɪʃənz/ (ah-puh-AY-shuhnz) in American English and /ɒpəɹeɪʃənz/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “at”. Build it as op-er-AT-ions, then run the third syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “operations” have?

4: op · er · at · ions. The beat lands on the third, “at”.

Is “operations” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˌɑpɚˈeɪʃənz/ (ah-puh-AY-shuhnz); British English says /ɒpəɹeɪʃənz/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “operations” mean?

As a noun: financial transactions at a brokerage; having to do with the execution of trades and keeping customer records For example: “The factory paused operations during the holiday week.” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “operations”?

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

Practise this word

Now say “operations” and see every sound

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