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operation

operation

403 3.4
The way a machine or system works
  • noun
  • /ˌɑːpəˈreɪʃən/
translation icon : funcionamiento
  • Storage cost is a hidden cost to the operation that viewers often don't see.
  • mode of operation
  • hours of operation
  • operation and maintenance

So we asked him how, how are operations determined?

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Examples

  • The power plant was ready for operation, including the fuel rods.

  • The human central nervous system controls the operation of organs and other body functions.

    Academic text (2012)
  • So we're sort of seeing some of that go into operation here way down the road.

  • Information about and insight into the operations of Swedish libraries are not easily accessible.

    Academic text (2015)
  • The majority of filtration systems in operation have multiple stages, and each stage should be defined.

    Academic text (2011)
  • The next step was to begin a full-scale operation to define the project's operational feasibility.

    Academic text (1999)
  • When it detects unsafe conditions, it prohibits the operation of affected valves and sounds an alarm.

    Academic text (2011)
  • The human central nervous system controls the operation of organs and other body functions.

  • The power plant was ready for operation, including the fuel rods.

  • The operation of the conveyor is much more art than science.

Synonyms

performance
vsoperation
  • Specialized
483 3.0

How well a machine or system works

focuses instead on the general process and usage
functionality
vsoperation
  • Specialized
70 4.6

The things a device or program can do

speaks about the way it works or is used
functioning
vsoperation
47 3.4

The way something works or operates

is broader including its use and how to make it work
workings
vsoperation
1 3.9

The parts inside a machine or system that make it run

refers instead to overall process or active use rather than parts

Idioms

24 3.2

Working now and serving its purpose

Compounds

A planned action by armed forces to achieve a goal

A secret police plan to trick people so they commit a crime and get arrested

A secret action by a government or army to avoid being noticed

Organized effort to save people who are trapped or in danger

Secret work by police or agents who hide their identity to gather evidence

8 4.9

A secret activity by a government to gather information about an enemy or threat

A military mission to stop fighting and make an area calm between groups or countries

6 5.7

Medical treatment with surgery and hormones that helps a person live as a different gender

A US-led military attack in 1991 that quickly forced Iraq's army out of Kuwait

3 7.7

A secret activity planned and done to stay hidden, often by spies or soldiers

surgical operation
  • Specialized
2 3.0

A medical treatment where a doctor makes a cut to fix, remove, or replace a part of the body

2 8.4

A military action that tries to change what people think or feel

1 8.4

A secret action that hides who did it, often for political or military reasons

amphibious operation
  • Specialized
1 8.1

A military action that lands soldiers from ships onto a shore

eye operation
  • Specialized
1 3.4

A surgery on the eye to fix vision or treat eye problems

1 6.8

A calculation that uses numbers with decimals often done by a computer

concurrent operation
  • Specialized
1 5.6

Two or more actions that happen at the same time

arithmetic operation
  • Specialized
1 3.3

A calculation with numbers like adding, subtracting, multiplying or dividing

1 3.2

A calculation in math like adding, subtracting, multiplying or dividing numbers

A business or group that is small and badly run

strategic operation
  • Specialized
1 7.0

A carefully planned military action to reach long-term goals

4.2

An operation with two inputs that gives a true or false result

binary operation
  • Specialized
6.5

A rule that combines two values into one result, like addition or AND

Boolean operation
  • Specialized
5.7

A rule that uses true and false inputs to give a true or false result like AND, OR, NOT

A police action in which officers pretend to buy illegal drugs to arrest sellers

cognitive operation
  • Specialized
6.4

A mental process that changes information, like thinking or remembering

computer operation
  • Specialized
3.9

A basic action a computer does, like adding or comparing numbers

combined operation
  • Specialized
7.4

A military action done together by two or more allied countries using land, sea, and air forces

control operation
  • Specialized
5.8

An action that starts, changes, or stops a device working with data

consecutive operation
  • Specialized
6.2

A series of tasks done one after another without overlap

dyadic operation
  • Specialized
8.8

A way of combining two things to give one result

7.0

An action that runs without waiting for other tasks so the program keeps working

auxiliary operation
  • Specialized
7.9

A task performed by equipment outside the main computer, for example a printer or external drive

9.9

A secret action to take someone to safety from a dangerous area

9.0

A secret action to send data out of a computer or network to steal it

fixed-cycle operation
  • Specialized
6.7

An action that runs for a set number of regular time steps in machines or computers

4.2

An action that follows fixed rules to give true or false results

logic operation
  • Specialized
3.7

A rule that combines true and false values like AND or OR

machine operation
  • Specialized
3.4

A basic task a computer or machine does as part of its program

majority operation
  • Specialized
8.7

A rule that gives 1 when more than half the inputs are 1 and 0 otherwise

9.9

An attack where someone blows themselves up to kill or hurt others for a cause

matrix operation
  • Specialized
5.9

A calculation that uses matrices like adding or multiplying them

A large American attack in World War I that helped push back German soldiers

monadic operation
  • Specialized
9.4

A math or programming action that takes only one input, like negation

multiplex operation
  • Specialized
7.0

A way of doing two or more tasks at the same time by sharing resources

An action a computer does to make paper copies of a document

9.6

An operation that sews the lower part of the womb closed during pregnancy to prevent early birth

real-time operation
  • Specialized
3.8

Handling data fast enough to keep up with things as they happen

rescue operation
  • Specialized
3.6

Organized effort to recover data and restart computer systems after a computer attack or failure

Actions that police or soldiers take to stop and control a violent crowd during a riot

9.9

An attack in which a person kills or injures others and also dies, usually using a bomb

off-line operation
  • Specialized
6.4

An action done by equipment not connected to or controlled by the main computer

operation code
  • Specialized
5.0

A part of a computer instruction that tells the computer what to do

overt operation
  • Specialized
5.5

An activity by military or intelligence groups done openly, not secretly

parallel operation
  • Specialized
4.9

Doing more than one task at the same time on computers or machines

Actions that follow one another in a fixed order

serial operation
  • Specialized
6.0

Tasks happen one after another, each starting after the last finishes

synchronous operation
  • Specialized
5.9

An operation that follows a regular clock so events happen at expected times

threshold operation
  • Specialized
6.6

A process that checks values against a set level and marks which values meet it

tin-pot operation
  • Offensive
7.9

A small badly run business or group that seems unimportant

Shirodkar's operation
  • Specialized
9.9

A surgical operation that puts a stitch around the cervix to stop it opening too early in pregnancy

A training activity where soldiers rehearse battle actions in realistic conditions without real fighting

Two or more things working at the same time

A planned military action with clear goals that is often secret

unary operation
  • Specialized
7.4

A math or computer action that uses one value

How Functional

seamlessness
1 4.9
operation
403 3.4
failure
  • Specialized
396 3.3

Surface Forms

operation singular
operations plural

Morphology

operation = operate (transparent) = operate + ion

The noun is the result of adding the productive suffix '-ion' to 'operate'; 'operation' meaning how something works is directly derived from 'operate'.

Etymology

Operation comes from the Latin verb operari, meaning 'to work', the same root as operate. So the operation of a machine is simply how it 'works'.