operating
op·er·at·ing/ˈɑpəɹeɪtɪŋ/adjective, noun, verb
operating is spelled O-P-E-R-A-T-I-N-G: 9 letters and 4 syllables (op·er·at·ing). It appears 56 times per million words in written English, the 1,822nd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, operating means “In operation; that operates” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in operating?
| Letters | 9: O-P-E-R-A-T-I-N-G |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4: op·er·at·ing |
| In writing | 56 times per million words; the 1,822nd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is operating?
Operating appears 56 times per million words in written English, the 1,822nd 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 operating?
- US /ˈɑpəɹeɪtɪŋ/
- UK /ˈɒpəɹeɪtɪŋ/
Operating has 4 syllables, split op·er·at·ing in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-operating.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What does operating mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
In operation; that operates.
Don't touch the operating machinery.
- 2
Involved in an operation.
The team arbitrarily chose that one operating frame of reference which we all use today.
noun
- 1
Synonym of operation (in the uncountable sense).
Sure, academic medicine is fascinating – but operating is the reason I became a surgeon.
verb
- 1
present participle and gerund of operate
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
How do you abbreviate operating?
Wiktionary records 2 abbreviations of operating: OWI, opg..
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).