synchronize
verb
Simple meaning
To cause two or more events or actions to happen at exactly the same time or same rate, or in a time-coordinated way.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
singkruhnyzSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈsɪŋkɹənaɪz
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.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
verb
transitive
To cause two or more events or actions to happen at exactly the same time or same rate, or in a time-coordinated way.
Cause to indicate the same time or rate
intransitive
To occur at the same time or with coordinated timing.
transitive
To cause (video and audio) to play in a coordinated way.
transitive
To set (a clock or watch) to display the same time as another.
Make synchronous and adjust in time or manner
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- B2 · Upper Intermediate (estimated)
- Frequency
- Uncommon
- Typical Use
- Varies by meaning
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: To cause two or more events or actions to happen at exactly the same time or same rate, or in a time-coordinated way.
Used this way, synchronize 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
- No strong connotation
- 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 synchronize
- “Let's synchronize our efforts.”verb
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
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Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Inflected forms
Grammatical variations of the same word.
The relation that exists when things occur at the same time.
Word family
Words built from the same root.
The relation that exists when things occur at the same time.
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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.