dictation
/dɪkˈteɪʃən/noun
dictation is spelled D-I-C-T-A-T-I-O-N: 9 letters and 3 syllables. It appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 41,154th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, dictation means “Dictating, the process of speaking for someone else to write down the words” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of dictation is dictations.
How many letters and syllables are in dictation?
| Letters | 9: D-I-C-T-A-T-I-O-N |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 2 million words; the 41,154th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is dictation?
Dictation appears about once in every 2 million words in written English, the 41,154th 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 pronounce dictation?
- US /dɪkˈteɪʃən/
Dictation has 3 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-dictation.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with dictation?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as dictation from its last stressed vowel (/eɪʃən/):
- situation
- association
- population
- administration
- operation
- organization
- application
- location
- generation
- foundation
- conversation
- investigation
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of dictation
- dictations plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does dictation mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
Dictating, the process of speaking for someone else to write down the words.
Since I learned shorthand, I can take dictation at eighty words a minute.
- 2
An activity in school where the teacher reads a passage aloud and the students write it down.
- 3
The act of ordering or commanding.
- 4
Orders given in an overbearing manner.
His habit, even with friends, was that of dictation.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Dictation in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
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 dictation come from?
From Late Latin dictātiō, noun of action from dictātus, the perfect passive participle of dictō. By surface analysis, dictate + -ion.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).