abrasion

Name: abrasion, English Word Data
Creator: Wiktionary
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

/əˈbɹeɪ.ʒn̩/

//əˈbɹeɪ.ʒn̩// noun

By PlainSpell Editorial Team · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) · analyzed May 6, 2026

The verdict

“abrasion” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #32,263 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#32,263
frequency rank, English: 8
letters: 12
tracked misspellings: 2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The act of abrading, wearing, or rubbing off; the wearing away by friction.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

abrasion vs abrasive

75% similar

abrasion vs ablation

75% similar

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

Key facts for abrasion
Property	Value
Headword	abrasion
Language	English
Part of speech	Noun
IPA	/əˈbɹeɪ.ʒn̩/
Letters	8
Frequency rank	#32,263
Misspellings tracked	12
Confusable pairs	2
Source	Wiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “abrasion” sits in English frequency

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

#32,263

#1#100#1K#10K#100K

← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for abrasion is 8 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /əˈbɹeɪ.ʒn̩/. Corpus data places it at rank #32,263 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 7 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for abrasion, with forms such as "abarsion", "abbrasion", and "abraison". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 2 confusable-pair relationships, "abrasive", "ablation", a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: First attested in 1656. From French abrasion (attested since 1611), from Medieval Latin abrasio (“a scraping”), from Latin abrādō (“scrape off”). See also abrade. The correct English form is abrasion, spelled A-B-R-A-S-I-O-N.

Definition

1
The act of abrading, wearing, or rubbing off; the wearing away by friction.
2
An act of abrasiveness.
3
The substance thus rubbed off; debris.
4
The effect of mechanical erosion of rock, especially a river bed, by rock fragments scratching and scraping it.
5
An abraded, scraped, or worn area.
6
A superficial wound caused by scraping; an area of skin where the cells on the surface have been scraped or worn away.
7
The wearing away of the surface of the tooth by chewing.

Etymology

First attested in 1656. From French abrasion (attested since 1611), from Medieval Latin abrasio (“a scraping”), from Latin abrādō (“scrape off”). See also abrade.

This word in other languages

abrasión(Español)abrasion(Français)Abrasion(Deutsch)raspagem(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: abarsion,abbrasion,abraison,abrasino,abrasionn,abrasoin,abrassion,abration,abrrasion,abrsaion,arbasion,barasion

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of abrasion - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

Edit distance from "abrasion"

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 "abrasion"?

"abrasion" is spelled A-B-R-A-S-I-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /əˈbɹeɪ.ʒn̩/.

What does "abrasion" mean?

As a noun, "abrasion" means: The act of abrading, wearing, or rubbing off; the wearing away by friction.

What words are commonly confused with "abrasion"?

"abrasion" is commonly confused with "abrasive", "ablation". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.

How do you pronounce "abrasion"?

The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "abrasion" is /əˈbɹeɪ.ʒn̩/. 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 "abrasion"?

First attested in 1656. From French abrasion (attested since 1611), from Medieval Latin abrasio (“a scraping”), from Latin abrādō (“scrape off”). See also abrade. 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.

Using “abrasion”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

The one correct English spelling is A-B-R-A-S-I-O-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
Say it as /əˈbɹeɪ.ʒn̩/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
Don't mix it up with “abrasive” - see the side-by-side comparison. abrasion vs abrasive
Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words

Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.