Standard Lemma guide

summation

noun · 6 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Received-Pronunciation: /sʌˈmeɪʃən/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • rhymes with -eɪʃən
  • CMU ARPABET: S AH0 M EY1 SH AH0 N Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

Summarization; summary; summing up.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

Summing; summing up; adding (adding up) of a series of items.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Topics: mathematics, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

the arithmetic operation of summing; calculating the sum of two or more numbers

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • the summation of four and three gives seven
  • four plus three equals seven

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: addition, plus

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: arithmetic operation

4

noun

Meaning 4

a concluding summary (as in presenting a case before a law court)

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: summing up, rundown

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: summary, sum-up

5

noun

Meaning 5

the final aggregate

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • the sum of all our troubles did not equal the misery they suffered

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: sum, sum total

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: collection, aggregation, accumulation, assemblage

Narrower terms: aggregate, congeries, conglomeration

6

noun

Meaning 6

(physiology) the process whereby multiple stimuli can produce a response (in a muscle or nerve or other part) that one stimulus alone does not produce

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: organic process, biological process

History

Etymology

Etymology tree English sum Proto-Indo-European *-tis Proto-Indo-European *-Hō Proto-Indo-European *-tiHō Proto-Italic *-tiō Latin -tiō Latin -ātiōlbor. Old French -ationbor. Middle English -acioun English -ation English summation From sum + -ation.

Across languages

Translations

21 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Bulgarian: обобщение (obobštenie) — summarization
  • Polish: sumowanie — summarization
  • Swedish: summering — summarization
  • Basque: batukari — mathematics: an adding up of a series of items
  • Bulgarian: събиране (sǎbirane) — mathematics: an adding up of a series of items
  • Bulgarian: сумиране (sumirane) — mathematics: an adding up of a series of items
  • Catalan: sumatori — mathematics: an adding up of a series of items
  • Georgian: დაჯამება (daǯameba) — mathematics: an adding up of a series of items
  • Georgian: შეკრება (šeḳreba) — mathematics: an adding up of a series of items
  • Greek: άθροιση (áthroisi) — mathematics: an adding up of a series of items
  • Icelandic: summumyndun — mathematics: an adding up of a series of items
  • Italian: sommatoria — mathematics: an adding up of a series of items
  • Polish: sumowanie — mathematics: an adding up of a series of items
  • Portuguese: somatório — mathematics: an adding up of a series of items
  • Portuguese: somatória — mathematics: an adding up of a series of items
  • Romanian: însumare — mathematics: an adding up of a series of items
  • Serbo-Croatian: zbrajanje — mathematics: an adding up of a series of items
  • Spanish: sumatoria — mathematics: an adding up of a series of items
  • Spanish: sumatorio — mathematics: an adding up of a series of items
  • Tagalog: kadagupan — mathematics: an adding up of a series of items
  • Turkish: toplama — mathematics: an adding up of a series of items
Real reading context

summation in complete knowledge articles