2 syllables: group, ing. Stress on group.
GROO-ping
/ˈɡɹupɪŋ/
grouping is pronounced GROO-ping (/ˈɡɹupɪŋ/). It has two syllables (group-ing), with the stress on "group". Grouping refers to the act of arranging or organizing items into groups or clusters. It can also describe a mathematical or logical process of forming sets or categories. In everyday use, it often implies categorizing for analysis, pattern recognition, or coordination within a system. The term emphasizes collective rather than individual treatment.
Grouping refers to the act of arranging or organizing items into groups or clusters. It can also describe a mathematical or logical process of forming sets or categories. In everyday use, it often implies categorizing for analysis, pattern recognition, or coordination within a system. The term emphasizes collective rather than individual treatment.
"The teacher suggested grouping the students by their skill level for the project."
"We’re grouping the data into three main categories to simplify the analysis."
"The dancers formed groups, and then the choreographer assigned roles within each grouping."
Pronounce as /ˈɡruː.pɪŋ/. Stress the first syllable: GRUOO-ting. The vowel in the first syllable is a long 'oo' as in 'food', then a short ’-ing’ ending. Keep the lips rounded for /ɡruː/ and finish with a crisp /pɪŋ/. Audio reference: think of 'group' + 'ing' with a light p release between the two parts.
Common errors include shortening the /ruː/ to a lax /ru/ and inserting an extra vowel before the -ing, like /ˈɡrʊː.ɪŋ/ or /ˈɡruː.ɪŋ/. To correct, keep the /ruː/ as a long vowel with rounded lips, then release a clean /p/ and end with /ɪŋ/. Ensure there isn’t a vowel between /ruː/ and /p/; it should be a smooth transition.”
In US, UK, and AU accents, the initial /ɡ/ and /r/ cluster is similar; differences appear in rhoticity and vowel length. US tends to maintain /ɹ/ rhoticity clearly before the vowel, UK tends to a tighter /ɡruːpɪŋ/ with a less pronounced post-vocalic r in non-rhotic variants; AU is similar to UK but with vowel quality that can be slightly broader in /uː/. Overall, the /ˈɡruː/ onset remains stable, with minor vowel shifts in the final syllable depending on accent.
The difficulty often lies in the consonant-vowel transition: a long /uː/ in /ruː/ followed by a quick /p/ onset, and then a reduced /ɪŋ/. Speakers may cluster the /ɡr/ or drop the /p/ in rapid speech, making the word sound like /ˈɡruːɪŋ/ or /ˈɡrʊŋ/. Emphasize the clear /p/ release and the distinct /ɪ/ before the final /ŋ/. Lip rounding for /uː/ and the timing of the /p/ release are key phonetic challenges.
What phonetic effect does the /ɡr/ cluster have in fast speech and how does it affect assimilation to the following /uː/? In fast speech, the /r/ can become a weak alveolar approximant and the /ɡ/ may blend with /r/ making /ɡr/ sound like a single alveolar stop release; keeping /ɡr/ distinct helps the long /uː/ remain clear. IPA details: /ˈɡruː.pɪŋ/ with full /ɡ/ release and /r/ as a rounded approximant before /uː/.
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Grouping derives from the verb group, which comes from the Old French groupe (late Middle English groope) meaning a crowd or cluster, from Latin forma or groppus in some senses, but the exact lineage is complex because early English used 'group' to mean a collection of people or things, and ‘group’ as a linguistic unit in mathematics and logic developed later. The modern sense of forming sets or categories emerged in the 19th and 20th centuries with systematic approaches in statistics, mathematics, and social science. The -ing suffix marks continuous or nominal gerund use in English, signaling an act or result of grouping. First known uses appear in the 15th-16th centuries in English texts referring to a crowd or band, but the sense of categorizing or organizing items accrued in technical language in the 19th century as data analysis and classification became prominent. The noun form ‘grouping’ follows typical derivational morphology from the verb; the word’s productive use in academic discourse solidified in statistics and taxonomy in the 20th century, adapting across disciplines such as computing, linguistics, and library science, where grouping is a fundamental operation for data organization and inference.
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Words that rhyme with "grouping"
-ing sounds
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