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reception

re·cep·tion/ɹɪˈsɛp.ʃn̩/noun

reception is a noun meaning “The act of receiving” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). It is spelled R-E-C-E-P-T-I-O-N and has 3 syllables (re·cep·tion), and it appears 17 times per million words in written English (wordfreq, 2021 data). The plural of reception is receptions.

What does reception mean?

noun

  1. 1

    The act of receiving.

  2. 2

    The act or ability to receive radio or similar signals.

    We have poor TV reception in the valley.

  3. 3

    A social engagement, usually to formally welcome someone.

    After the wedding we proceeded to the reception.

  4. 4

    A reaction; the treatment received on first talking to a person, arriving at a place, etc.

    The ambassador's jokes met a cold reception.

  5. 5

    The desk of a hotel or office where guests are received.

    The reception of the hotel is on the second floor; exit the lift and turn right.

  6. 6

    UKThe school year, or part thereof, between preschool and Year 1, when children are introduced to formal education.

  7. 7

    The conscious adoption or transplantation of legal phenomena from a different culture.

  8. 8

    The act of catching a pass.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

How do you pronounce reception?

  • /ɹɪˈsɛp.ʃn̩/

Reception has 3 syllables, split re·cep·tion in writing.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-reception.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).

Forms of reception

  • receptions plural

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

How common is reception?

Reception appears 17 times per million words in written English, the 4,838th most frequent word form in the list.

Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).

How do you abbreviate reception?

Wiktionary records 2 abbreviations of reception: recpt, rx.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

Reception in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese

LanguageWords
Frenchréception (act of receiving), accueil (social engagement)
GermanEmpfang (act of receiving), Rezeption (front desk)
Portugueserecepção (act of receiving)
Spanishrecepción (act of receiving), recibimiento (social engagement), cobertura (electronics: act or ability to receive signals)

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.

Where does reception come from?

From Middle English recepcion, reception, from Middle French reception, from Latin receptiōn- (“the act of receiving; reception”), from recipiō (“receive”), from re- (“back”) + capiō (“to hold”). Equivalent to receive + -tion.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).