consultation

/ˌkɒnsəlˈteɪʃən/

//ˌkɒnsəlˈteɪʃən// noun

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

"consultation" is a 12-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“consultation” has 19 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #6,885. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#6,885
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords
19
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The act of consulting.

Corpus desk

Index EN-consultation · consultation · English

consultation · rank #6,885 · 19 variants · 2 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #6,885
  • LEN-MEGA 12 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 2 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 19 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH confusing

Nearest frequency peer: confusing (-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 “consultation”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “consultation” 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).

consultation vs consultative
83% similar
consultation vs consolation
83% similar

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

Key facts for consultation
PropertyValue
Headwordconsultation
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˌkɒnsəlˈteɪʃən/
Letters12
Frequency rank#6,885
Misspellings tracked19
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “consultation”

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).consultationlands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “confusing” (#6,884), “continental” (#6,886), “complexity” (#6,883). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “consultation” is #6,885. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 19 spelling variants around consultation (IPA /ˌkɒnsəlˈteɪʃən/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #6,885 among 5,599 “C” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 19 likely wrong-spelling variants for consultation, with forms such as "cconsultation", "cnosultation", and "connsultation". 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, "consultative", "consolation", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle French consultation, from Latin consultatio. Morphologically consult + -ation. The correct English form is consultation, spelled C-O-N-S-U-L-T-A-T-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    The act of consulting.
  2. 2
    A conference for the exchange of information and advice.
  3. 3
    An appointment or meeting with a professional person, such as a doctor.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Plans were prepared under the auspices of the L.S.W.R. by W. R. Galbraith and R. F. Church, with J. F. Greathead in consultation, for a deep-level electric line on the tube principle, 1½ miles long, from a point under the main-line terminus at Waterloo to the eastern end of Queen Victoria Street, […].
  2. Riled by a decision that went against him, Ziv kicked his displaced boot at the assistant referee and, after a short consultation between the officials, he was given his marching orders and the loudest cheer of the night.

Etymology

From Middle French consultation, from Latin consultatio. Morphologically consult + -ation.

This word in other languages

consulta(Español)consultation(Français)Beratung(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • cconsultation
  • cnosultation
  • connsultation
  • conslutation
  • conssultation
  • consulattion
  • consulltation
  • consultaiton
  • consultasion
  • consultatino
  • consultationn
  • consultatoin
  • consultattion
  • consulttaion
  • consulttation
  • consutlation
  • conusltation
  • cosnultation
  • ocnsultation

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

cconsultation1cnosultation2connsultation1conslutation2conssultation1consulattion2consulltation1consultaiton2
Edit distance from "consultation"

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 "consultation"?
"consultation" is spelled C-O-N-S-U-L-T-A-T-I-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˌkɒnsəlˈteɪʃən/.
What does "consultation" mean?
As a noun, "consultation" means: The act of consulting.
What words are commonly confused with "consultation"?
"consultation" is commonly confused with "consultative", "consolation". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "consultation"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "consultation" is /ˌkɒnsəlˈteɪʃən/. 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 "consultation"?
From Middle French consultation, from Latin consultatio. Morphologically consult + -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 "consultation", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 12 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

deliberately#6,888broadcasting#6,874associations#6,866observations#6,942

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (19 here; floor ≥5).

preservation19 variantsconsiderably19 variantsinstitutional19 variantsinstrumental19 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list