Desertion

[dezɛʁˈt͡si̯oːn]

/[dezɛʁˈt͡si̯oːn]/ noun

The verdict

“Desertion” is uncommon German (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency German
9
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - unerlaubte Entfernung vom Militärdienst

Corpus desk

Index DE-desertion · Desertion · German

Desertion · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "D" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Key facts for Desertion
PropertyValue
HeadwordDesertion
LanguageGerman
Part of speechNoun
IPA[dezɛʁˈt͡si̯oːn]
Letters9
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Langschwanz-Rang von „Desertion“ im Deutschen

Desertionliegt außerhalb der 100.000 häufigsten deutschen Wörter, im Langschwanz technischer, archaischer oder seltener Formen, genau dort, wo Schreibzweifeln zuschlagen.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

Desertion is uncommon German outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed [dezɛʁˈt͡si̯oːn]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "unerlaubte Entfernung vom Militärdienst".

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for Desertion, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable German rules. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

No borrowing history is documented for this entry, so its spelling is best explained by sound-to-letter mapping rather than etymology. The correct German form is Desertion, spelled D-E-S-E-R-T-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    unerlaubte Entfernung vom Militärdienst

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how Desertion appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. „Nach dem Scheitern der zweiten Desertion im Januar 1787 konnte Seume sich im gleichen Jahr dem preußischen Söldnerdienst doch noch entziehen.“
  2. „Schon seit einigen Tagen war in unserem Kreis die Möglichkeit seiner Desertion erwogen worden.“

Synonyms

This word in other languages

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "Desertion"?
"Desertion" is spelled D-E-S-E-R-T-I-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is [dezɛʁˈt͡si̯oːn].
What does "Desertion" mean?
As a noun, "Desertion" means: unerlaubte Entfernung vom Militärdienst
How do you pronounce "Desertion"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Desertion" is [dezɛʁˈt͡si̯oːn]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "Desertion" come from?
"Desertion" is a German word. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for this and other words across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German on PlainSpell.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list