Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

orientate

/ˈɒɹi.ənteɪt/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.94 in modern English

Syllables: ori-en-tate
IPA: /ˈɒɹi.ənteɪt/

9

Scrabble Score

9

Letters

3

Syllables

7

Unique Chars

Meaning

verb

To face a given direction.

British usage; Intransitive verb

verb

To determine one's position relative to the surroundings; to orient (oneself).

British usage

verb

To arrange in order; to dispose or place (a body) so as to show its relation to other bodies, or the relation of its parts among themselves.

verb

To position (something), to align relative to a given position.

British usage; Transitive verb

verb

To move or turn toward the east; to veer from the north or south toward the east.

Archaic

Example Sentences

"He[…]stood for a moment, orientating himself exactly in the light of his knowledge."
"He came out of the station and took some time to orientate himself."
"The one preferred is to make the dominant forms first order, that is, orientated in such a way as to intersect both horizontal crystallographic axes."
"Try to orientate your students towards the science subjects."

Etymology

From orient + -ate or a back-formation from orientation. Compare French orienter and Italian orientare.

Word Breakdown

Root: *h₃er-
Suffix: orient

Regional Pronunciation

British English: /ˈɒɹi.ənteɪt/

Usage

Inflected Forms

orientates (present, singular) orientating (participle, present) orientated (participle, past) orientated (past)

Derived Forms

disorientate misorientate orientative orientator reorientate

Phrases

orientating response

Frequently Paired Words

abortion orienate Orient origin

Synonyms

orient

Questions

How do you pronounce orientate?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈɒɹi.ənteɪt/.
What does orientate mean?: To face a given direction.
Where does orientate come from?: From orient + -ate or a back-formation from orientation. Compare French orienter and Italian orientare.

How to pronounce orientate

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “orientate”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈɒɹi.ənteɪt/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “orientate”.
Repeat and practice — Say “orientate” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.