Pronunciation

How to pronounce “publication

“publication” is pronounced /ˌpʌblɪˈkeɪʃən/ (pu-bli-KAY-shuhn) in American English and /pʌblɪkeɪʃən/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “at”.
The sound

Say “publication” in 4 beats

Say it like this

publication

/ˌpʌblɪˈkeɪʃən/

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

4 beats
  1. pub
  2. licblɪ
  3. atkeɪstress
  4. ionʃən
IPA (American)
/ˌpʌblɪˈkeɪʃən/
IPA (British)
/pʌblɪkeɪʃən/
Respelling
pu-bli-KAY-shuhn
Syllables
4 — pub-lic-AT-ion
Stress
Stress the third syllable: pub-lic-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

/ˌpʌblɪˈkeɪʃən/

British

/pʌblɪkeɪʃən/

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

Meaning

What “publication” means

  1. noun

    a copy of a printed work offered for distribution

  2. noun

    the act of issuing printed materials

  3. noun

    the communication of something to the public; making information generally known

Say it in a sentence

Publication was delayed until the photographs were cleared.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

10 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

publication”, answered

How do you pronounce “publication”?

“publication” is pronounced /ˌpʌblɪˈkeɪʃən/ (pu-bli-KAY-shuhn) in American English and /pʌblɪkeɪʃən/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “at”. Build it as pub-lic-AT-ion, then run the third syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “publication” have?

4: pub · lic · at · ion. The beat lands on the third, “at”.

Is “publication” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ˌpʌblɪˈkeɪʃən/ (pu-bli-KAY-shuhn); British English says /pʌblɪkeɪʃən/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “publication” mean?

As a noun: a copy of a printed work offered for distribution For example: “Publication was delayed until the photographs were cleared.” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “publication”?

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

Practise this word

Now say “publication” and see every sound

Record it once and sayit lines your audio up against the target sound by sound — what landed, what slipped, and what it sounded like instead.