abduction

/əbˈdʌk.ʃn̩/

//əbˈdʌk.ʃn̩// noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"abduction" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“abduction” has 14 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #16,396. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#16,396
frequency rank, English
3,931
“A” headwords
14
tracked misspellings
5
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Leading away; a carrying away.

Corpus desk

Index EN-abduction · abduction · English

abduction · rank #16,396 · 14 variants · 5 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #16,396
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 5 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 14 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,931
  • PHOTO-FINISH abbot

Nearest frequency peer: abbot (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “abduction”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “abduction” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

abduction vs auction
78% similar
abduction vs addiction
78% similar
abduction vs abductions
90% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for abduction
PropertyValue
Headwordabduction
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/əbˈdʌk.ʃn̩/
Letters9
Frequency rank#16,396
Misspellings tracked14
Confusable pairs5
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “abduction”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).abductionlands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “abbot” (#16,395), “ache” (#16,397), “yikes” (#16,393). Among 3,931 “A” headwords, “abduction” is #16,396. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 14 spelling variants around abduction (IPA /əbˈdʌk.ʃn̩/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #16,396 among 3,931 “A” headwords. Wiktionary lists 5 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 14 likely wrong-spelling variants for abduction, with forms such as "abbduction", "abdcution", and "abdduction". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 5 confusable-pair relationships, "auction", "addiction", "abductions", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Latin abductiō(n) (“robbing; abduction”), from abdūcō (“take or lead away”), from ab (“away”) + dūcō (“to lead”). By surface analysis, abduct + -ion or abduce + -tion. * (physiology): From French, from Latin abductus. * Compare French abduction. The correct English form is abduction, spelled A-B-D-U-C-T-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    Leading away; a carrying away.
  2. 2
    The act of abducing or abducting; a drawing apart; the movement which separates a limb or other part from the axis, or middle line, of the body.
  3. 3
    A syllogism or form of argument in which the major premise is evident, but the minor is only probable.
  4. 4
    The wrongful, and usually forcible, carrying off of a human being.
  5. 5
    Alien abduction.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Abduction is performed by asking the patient to raise the arm at the side as high as they can with the examiner stabilizing the scapula by holding it down.
  2. The significance of such a step is that it is not morphologically triggered: it is a step of abduction, and what is required here is a meta-level process of reasoning.

Etymology

From Latin abductiō(n) (“robbing; abduction”), from abdūcō (“take or lead away”), from ab (“away”) + dūcō (“to lead”). By surface analysis, abduct + -ion or abduce + -tion. * (physiology): From French, from Latin abductus. * Compare French abduction.

Synonyms

appropriationkidnappingseizurewithdrawalretroductionabstraction

Antonyms

adductionreplacementrestitutionrestorationsurrenderreinstatement

This word in other languages

rapto(Español)enlèvement(Français)Entführung(Deutsch)abdução(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • abbduction
  • abdcution
  • abdduction
  • abducction
  • abduciton
  • abducsion
  • abductino
  • abductionn
  • abductoin
  • abducttion
  • abdutcion
  • abudction
  • adbuction
  • baduction

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of abduction - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

abbduction1abdcution2abdduction1abducction1abduciton2abducsion1abductino2abductionn1
Edit distance from "abduction"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "abduction"?
"abduction" is spelled A-B-D-U-C-T-I-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /əbˈdʌk.ʃn̩/.
What does "abduction" mean?
As a noun, "abduction" means: Leading away; a carrying away.
What words are commonly confused with "abduction"?
"abduction" is commonly confused with "auction", "addiction", "abductions". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "abduction"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "abduction" is /əbˈdʌk.ʃn̩/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "abduction"?
From Latin abductiō(n) (“robbing; abduction”), from abdūcō (“take or lead away”), from ab (“away”) + dūcō (“to lead”). By surface analysis, abduct + -ion or abduce + -tion. * (physiology): From French, from Latin abductus. * Compare French abduction. See the full etymology section above for more details.
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.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "abduction", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

ancestral#16,400antiquity#16,402wolverine#16,389appraisal#16,404

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (14 here; floor ≥5).

whispered14 variantsBernstein14 variantstimetable14 variantsservicing14 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list