How many syllables in “characterization”?

“characterization” has 6 syllables: char·ac·ter·i·za·tion

IPA

/ˌkɛ.ɹək.tɚ.ɪ.ˈzeɪ.ʃən/

Stress

char-ac-ter-i-ZA-tion (pattern 2-0-0-0-1-0)

Division

char·ac·ter·i·za·tion

Pronunciation

Say it like	IPA	Syllables	Count	Source
char-ac-ter-i-ZA-tion	/ˌkɛ.ɹək.tɚ.ɪ.ˈzeɪ.ʃən/	k eh · r ah k · t er · ih · z ey · sh ah n	6	CMU dictionary

Syllables are shown in ARPAbet (the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary's phoneme alphabet). Respellings put the stressed syllable in capitals.

Syllables vs. morphemes

Syllables (6)

char·ac·ter·i·za·tion

Morphemes (3)

character + -ize + -ation

The syllables of characterization (char·ac·ter·i·za·tion) do not line up with its morphemes (character + -ize + -ation): the syllable “za” contains letters from two different morphemes. Syllables follow sound and spelling rules; morphemes follow meaning, so the two kinds of boundary need not agree.

Full morpheme breakdown of “characterization” →

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Pronunciations from the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. Hyphenation from the hyph_en_US patterns.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many syllables are in "characterization"?

"characterization" has six syllables: char·ac·ter·i·za·tion.

How do you divide "characterization" into syllables?

char·ac·ter·i·za·tion. The syllables of characterization (char·ac·ter·i·za·tion) do not line up with its morphemes (character + -ize + -ation): the syllable “za” contains letters from two different morphemes. Syllables follow sound and spelling rules; morphemes follow meaning, so the two kinds of boundary need not agree.

Is this syllable counter free?

Yes. The Fixie syllable counter is free, needs no signup, and runs in your browser; paste any text to count syllables, see stress and IPA.