Meaning & use
realisation
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Meanings
nouncountable or uncountable
The moment when you suddenly understand or become fully aware of something you had not grasped before.
Grammar: Often followed by that or of: the realisation that he was late, a realisation of the danger.
Patterns
- the realisation that something
- a realisation of something
- come to the realisation that something
The realisation that she had left the oven on hit her halfway to work.
There was a slow realisation among the staff that the company was in trouble.
He came to the realisation that he did not enjoy the job.
noununcountableformal
The act of making a hope, plan or idea actually happen.
Grammar: Usually followed by of: the realisation of a dream.
Patterns
- the realisation of something
The opening of the library was the realisation of a long-held dream.
The realisation of the project depends on funding.
For the architect, the finished tower was the realisation of ten years of planning.
noununcountablefinancespecialist
The act of selling property or assets in order to turn them into money.
Grammar: A specialist term in finance and accounting, followed by of.
Patterns
- the realisation of assets
The realisation of the company's assets raised enough to pay the creditors.
Accountants recorded the realisation of the investment at year end.
Word forms
| plural | realisations |
|---|
Common combinations
- a dawning realisation
- A dawning realisation spread across his face.
- come to the realisation
- I came to the realisation that I needed more sleep.
- a sudden realisation
- A sudden realisation made her stop talking.
- the realisation of a dream
- Winning the cup was the realisation of a dream.
- a growing realisation
- There was a growing realisation that prices would keep rising.
- a stark realisation
- It was a stark realisation of how little time was left.
Synonyms and how they differ
- awareness
- Awareness is a general state of knowing, whereas realisation is the moment you begin to know.
- understanding
- Understanding is a deeper, ongoing grasp, while realisation often describes a sudden insight.
- epiphany
- An epiphany is a dramatic, life-changing insight, so it is stronger than an ordinary realisation.
- fulfilment
- Fulfilment fits the sense of a wish coming true, but it cannot mean a sudden understanding.
Opposites
Word family
- realise verb
- to understand something fully, or to make something happen
- realised adjective
- fully understood or made to happen
- realisable adjective
- able to be achieved or turned into cash
- realization noun
- the American spelling of realisation
Commonly confused: realisation or realization?
realisation vs realization
Realization is the American spelling and has exactly the same meaning as realisation.
Practice
In the sentence 'The realisation that he was lost made him stop and check the map', what does realisation mean?
Choose one answer.
Here realisation is the moment of becoming aware that he was lost. The plan-carried-out and sale-of-property senses exist but do not fit this sentence.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “realisation”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.