avoidance

/əˈvɔɪdəns/

//əˈvɔɪdəns// noun

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

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

The verdict

“avoidance” has 13 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #14,070. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#14,070
frequency rank, English
3,931
“A” headwords
13
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The act of avoiding or shunning; keeping clear of.

Corpus desk

Index EN-avoidance · avoidance · English

avoidance · rank #14,070 · 13 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #14,070
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 13 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,931
  • PHOTO-FINISH Babylon

Nearest frequency peer: Babylon (+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 “avoidance”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “avoidance” 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).

avoidance vs avoidable
78% similar

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

Key facts for avoidance
PropertyValue
Headwordavoidance
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/əˈvɔɪdəns/
Letters9
Frequency rank#14,070
Misspellings tracked13
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “avoidance”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).avoidancelands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “Babylon” (#14,071), “asbestos” (#14,068), “Barney” (#14,072). Among 3,931 “A” headwords, “avoidance” is #14,070. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 13 spelling variants around avoidance (IPA /əˈvɔɪdəns/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #14,070 among 3,931 “A” headwords. Wiktionary lists 6 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 13 likely wrong-spelling variants for avoidance, with forms such as "aovidance", "aviodance", and "avodiance". 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 1 confusable-pair relationship, "avoidable", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English avoidaunce, from avoid + -ance. The correct English form is avoidance, spelled A-V-O-I-D-A-N-C-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    The act of avoiding or shunning; keeping clear of.
  2. 2
    The act of annulling; annulment.
  3. 3
    The act of becoming vacant, or the state of being vacant, specifically used for the state of a benefice becoming void by the death, deprivation, or resignation of the incumbent.
  4. 4
    The act of dismissing a person.
  5. 5
    The act of quitting a position or benefice.
  6. 6
    The course by which anything (especially water) is carried off.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. At her invitation he outlined for her the succeeding chapters with terse military accuracy ; and what she liked best and best understood was avoidance of that false modesty which condescends, turning technicality into pabulum.
  2. In the Upper Gallery too I wish that there may be, if the Place will yield it, some Fountains running in divers Places from the Wall, with some fine Avoidances.

Etymology

From Middle English avoidaunce, from avoid + -ance.

This word in other languages

evitación(Español)évitement(Français)Vermeidung(Deutsch)evasão(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • aovidance
  • aviodance
  • avodiance
  • avoiadnce
  • avoidacne
  • avoidancce
  • avoidanec
  • avoidannce
  • avoiddance
  • avoidence
  • avoidnace
  • avvoidance
  • vaoidance

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of avoidance - 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.

aovidance2aviodance2avodiance2avoiadnce2avoidacne2avoidancce1avoidanec2avoidannce1
Edit distance from "avoidance"

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 "avoidance"?
"avoidance" is spelled A-V-O-I-D-A-N-C-E. The IPA pronunciation is /əˈvɔɪdəns/.
What does "avoidance" mean?
As a noun, "avoidance" means: The act of avoiding or shunning; keeping clear of.
What words are commonly confused with "avoidance"?
"avoidance" is commonly confused with "avoidable". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "avoidance"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "avoidance" is /əˈvɔɪdəns/. 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 "avoidance"?
From Middle English avoidaunce, from avoid + -ance. 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 "avoidance", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

depicting#14,104fireplace#14,122Greenwich#14,127safeguard#14,013

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (13 here; floor ≥5).

replicate13 variantsrepairing13 variantsintuition13 variantsmarkings13 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list