citation

/ˌsaɪˈteɪʃn̩/

//ˌsaɪˈteɪʃn̩// noun

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

"citation" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“citation” has 12 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #9,299. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#9,299
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords
12
tracked misspellings
3
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An official summons or notice given to a person to appear.

Corpus desk

Index EN-citation · citation · English

citation · rank #9,299 · 12 variants · 3 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #9,299
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 3 pairs
  • VAR-MID 12 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH Christina

Nearest frequency peer: Christina (-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 “citation”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “citation” 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).

citation vs creation
75% similar
citation vs curation
75% similar
citation vs cation
75% similar

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

Key facts for citation
PropertyValue
Headwordcitation
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˌsaɪˈteɪʃn̩/
Letters8
Frequency rank#9,299
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs3
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “citation”

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).citationlands 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 “Christina” (#9,298), “clues” (#9,300), “chickens” (#9,297). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “citation” is #9,299. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 12 spelling variants around citation (IPA /ˌsaɪˈteɪʃn̩/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #9,299 among 5,599 “C” headwords. Wiktionary lists 9 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for citation, with forms such as "ccitation", "ciattion", and "citaiton". 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 3 confusable-pair relationships, "creation", "curation", "cation", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English citacioun, from Old French citation, from Latin citātiō. By surface analysis, cite + -ation. The correct English form is citation, spelled C-I-T-A-T-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    An official summons or notice given to a person to appear.
  2. 2
    The paper containing such summons or notice.
  3. 3
    The act of citing a passage from a text, or from another person, using the exact words of the original text or speech and giving credit to the original by referencing.
  4. 4
    An entry in a list of sources from which information was taken, typically following a prescribed bibliographical style; a reference.
  5. 5
    The passage or words quoted; a quotation.
  6. 6
    A quotation with attached bibliographical details demonstrating the use of a particular lexical item in a dictionary, especially a dictionary on historical principles.
  7. 7
    Enumeration; mention.
  8. 8
    A reference to decided cases, or books of authority, to prove a point in law.
  9. 9
    A commendation in recognition of some achievement, or a formal statement of an achievement.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. No citation was issued upon this appeal returnable to the next term of this court, nor was the record filed and the cause docketed during that term. On the 29th of May, 1865, however, a citation was issued, returnable at this term, and service of this citation was acknowledged by the present district attorney; and the writ was returned and the record file…
  2. In late September, over a three-day period, Placer County conducted 183 stops among riders, some involving groups, which led to 30 citations and 25 e-motorcycles being towed.

Etymology

From Middle English citacioun, from Old French citation, from Latin citātiō. By surface analysis, cite + -ation.

This word in other languages

citatorio(Español)Vorladung(Deutsch)citação(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ccitation
  • ciattion
  • citaiton
  • citasion
  • citatino
  • citationn
  • citatoin
  • citattion
  • cittaion
  • cittation
  • ctiation
  • ictation

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of citation - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

ccitation1ciattion2citaiton2citasion1citatino2citationn1citatoin2citattion1
Edit distance from "citation"

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 "citation"?
"citation" is spelled C-I-T-A-T-I-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˌsaɪˈteɪʃn̩/.
What does "citation" mean?
As a noun, "citation" means: An official summons or notice given to a person to appear.
What words are commonly confused with "citation"?
"citation" is commonly confused with "creation", "curation", "cation". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "citation"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "citation" is /ˌsaɪˈteɪʃn̩/. 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 "citation"?
From Middle English citacioun, from Old French citation, from Latin citātiō. By surface analysis, cite + -ation. 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 "citation", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

chickens#9,297confined#9,307addicted#9,279dividend#9,321

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (12 here; floor ≥5).

electron12 variantsinfinity12 variantsmembrane12 variantsmurderer12 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list