rotation

noun

Simple meaning

Turning around a centre or an axis.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

rohtayshuhn

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US device voice

IPA pronunciation (US)

ɹoʊˈteɪʃən

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

noun

chiefly uncountable
The act of turning around a centre or an axis.
A single complete turn (axial or orbital)
“The plane made three rotations before it crashed.”
A single complete cycle around a centre or an axis.
The act of rotating as if on an axis
A regular variation in a sequence, such as to even out wear, or people taking turns in a task; a duty roster.
Repeated play of songs on a radio station, advertisements on a television channel, etc.

Word at a Glance

Difficulty: B1 · Intermediate (estimated)
Frequency: Common
Typical Use: Everyday English

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: The act of turning around a centre or an axis.

Used this way, rotation is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.

Emotional tone: Neutral
Formality: Neutral
Intensity: Not strongly marked
How common: Moderately common
Connotation: Matter-of-fact
Usage feel: Neutral and straightforward

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

More ways to use rotation

“Crop rotation makes a balanced demand on the fertility of the soil.”noun
“The rotation of the dancer kept time with the music.”noun

Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

crop rotationjob rotationspecific rotationclockwise rotationaxial rotationexternal rotationinternal rotationrotation axis

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Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Word family

Words built from the same root.

rotationaladjectiveDerived adjective
Related to the act of rotating as if on an axis.

Compound terms

Established multiword terms.

counterclockwise rotationnounCompound term
Rotation to the left.
axial rotationnounCompound term
Rotary motion of an object around its own axis.
orbital rotationnounCompound term
Motion of an object in an orbit around a fixed point.
axis of rotationnounCompound term
The center around which something rotates.
clockwise rotationnounCompound term
Rotation to the right.

Related words

Connected by subject or meaning, not by word formation.

rotational nystagmusnounRelated term
Nystagmus caused by the body rotating rapidly.
post-rotational nystagmusnounRelated term
Nystagmus caused by suddenly stopping the rapid rotation of the body.

Related Words

Connected to the same idea, not synonyms.

rotateverb
equatornoun
asteroidnoun

More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin

Synonyms

Sense: turning around a centre

roll

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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.