How to spell function

hear itfunc·tion/'fəŋkʃən/nounRules and real life

What it means: The purpose or role of something.

In a sentence: The toy robot has a special function that makes it dance.

The part people get wrong

Watch for an unstressed vowel that is hard to hear. Often misspelled as funtion or fuction.

Same family: functional, functioning, dysfunction, malfunction, functionality. If you can spell one, the shared part carries to the others.

Where it comes from: “Function” comes from the Latin word *functio*, meaning “a performing” or “execution,” from *fungi* meaning “to perform.” This is why many related words, like “dysfunction” and “malfunction,” still carry the idea of something working—or not working—properly.

Patterns it uses: The unstressed vowel (schwa) · -tion, -sion or -cian?

Try spelling it

You will hear the word and a sentence. Type it and press Enter. Then four more words from the same level, so you know where you stand.

Words like this

possession · inspection · conversation · description · preparation · passion · depression · funeral

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