Stimulation

How to spell stimulation

11 letters · 4 syllables

How to pronounce stimulation

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does stimulation mean?

1. nounThe action of rousing the body, mind, or activity to greater interest, energy, or function.

Stimulation in a sentence

• The new toys gave the children plenty of mental stimulation.

• Caffeine provides a quick burst of stimulation in the morning.

Where does stimulation come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word descends from the Latin stimulus, which literally named a pointed stick or goad used to drive cattle and oxen forward. From that physical sense of prodding came the verb stimulare, meaning to prick, urge, or rouse into action. The abstract noun stimulatio described the act of spurring something on, and English took up stimulation in the early 1600s, first in medical and physical contexts before broadening to mental and emotional rousing. The same root quietly survives in the word stimulus itself, still used in psychology, and the buried image of a sharp goad is a neat reminder that the middle of the word is spelled with -mul-, not -mil-. The spelling trap for adults is usually that unstressed middle vowel, where the schwa hides whether it should be an i or a u.

How the word is built

• stimul- (from Latin stimulus: a goad, prod)
• -ation (noun of action)