English pronunciation · Words Starting with A
Auction Pronunciation
Auction is pronounced AHK-shuhn, IPA /ˈɑkʃən/.
AHK-shuhn
US /ˈɑkʃən/ · UK /ˈɔːkʃən/
Syllables: AHK · shuhn (2 syllables, stress on syllable 1)
noun and verb: A sale in which goods go to whoever bids the most, or to sell them that way.
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Auction in a Sentence
- The painting goes to auction in November.
- They auctioned the whole contents of the house.
- He bought the tractor at a farm auction.
Common Mispronunciations of Auction
Not AK-shuhn
An au pair opens this word out to the vowel of law, which is all that separates an auction from an action. Learners drop it constantly because the spelling looks close.
Not ow-KSHUHN
Front beat, and the au is a single long vowel rather than the ow of out. Nothing in the second half of the word rises.
Tip: Americans who merge the vowels of cot and caught say AHK-shuhn, which is the reading the dictionary here prints.
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