What does dictation mean?
Word: Dictation
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Dictation means the act of speaking words aloud for someone else to write down. In class it is a test where pupils write what the teacher reads out.
How do you spell dictation?
Syllables: dic - ta - tion
Tricky part: Pupils hear a sh sound near the end and write dictasion or dictashion, when a t begins the last beat.
Watch out for: dictasion, dictashion
Memory tip: Picture a teacher reading slowly while the class writes: a t sits at the start of the last beat, never an s.
Dictation in a sentence
Example 1: Ms Rao gave us a dictation of twenty hard words on Monday.
Example 2: Neel lost marks in dictation because he hurried.
Example 3: The author writes her stories through dictation, speaking them into her phone.
Fun Fact
The word goes back to a Latin verb meaning to say again and again. Long before voice typing, office workers learnt a quick system of signs called shorthand so that they could take dictation at full speed.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Cookie
Insert the correct pair of letters to form a word:
d_ct_tion
a) i, e
b) e, e
c) e, a
d) i, a
Show answer
d) i, a. The first beat has the i of pin and the second has the a of late.
Word Cookie
Find the extra letter in the word:
dictaition
a) t
b) i
c) n
d) a
Show answer
b) i. An i has crept in after the a, which needs no partner here.
Mingle-Mangle
Form a meaningful word from the jumbled letters:
aondciitt
a) dictation
b) education
c) dedication
d) direction
Show answer
a) dictation. The jumble has two t's and a c but no e.
Spell-o-Spell
Choose the incorrectly spelt word:
a) vocabulary
b) paragraph
c) dictation
d) grammer
Show answer
d) grammer. Grammar ends in ar, not er.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which pair of skills does a spelling dictation test most directly?
a) singing and dancing
b) counting and sorting
c) listening and spelling
d) reading and drawing
Show answer
c) listening and spelling
2. Before computers could type speech, who in an office usually took dictation?
a) a secretary
b) a plumber
c) a security guard
d) a delivery driver
Show answer
a) a secretary
