convulsion

/kənˈvʌlʃən/

//kənˈvʌlʃən// noun

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

"convulsion" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“convulsion” is uncommon English (frequency #80,345 among 5,599 “C” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#80,345
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An intense, paroxysmal, involuntary muscular contraction.

Corpus desk

Index EN-convulsion · convulsion · English

convulsion · rank #80,345 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #80,345
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH contractile

Nearest frequency peer: contractile (-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.

Long-tail ranks near “convulsion”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “convulsion” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for convulsion
PropertyValue
Headwordconvulsion
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/kənˈvʌlʃən/
Letters10
Frequency rank#80,345
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “convulsion” in English

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).convulsionfalls in this rarity band:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “contractile” (#80,344), “Copernican” (#80,346), “conny” (#80,343). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “convulsion” is #80,345. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

convulsion is uncommon English at frequency #80,345 among 5,599 “C” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /kənˈvʌlʃən/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.

convulsion has no tracked misspelling variants, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Latin convulsiō, from convellō. The correct English form is convulsion, spelled C-O-N-V-U-L-S-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    An intense, paroxysmal, involuntary muscular contraction.
  2. 2
    An uncontrolled fit, as of laughter; a paroxysm.
  3. 3
    Violent turmoil.
  4. 4
    Hysteric in nature.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. 1850-1859, Charles Dickens, Household Words That immortal creature had gone over the proofs with great pains — had of course taken out the stiflings — hard-plungings, lungeings, and other convulsions — and had also taken out her weakenings and damagings of her own effects.
  2. Earthquakes and convulsions of nature shake Earth on a regular basis.

Etymology

From Latin convulsiō, from convellō.

This word in other languages

convulsión(Español)convulsion(Français)Konvulsion(Deutsch)convulsão(Português)

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 "convulsion"?
"convulsion" is spelled C-O-N-V-U-L-S-I-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /kənˈvʌlʃən/.
What does "convulsion" mean?
As a noun, "convulsion" means: An intense, paroxysmal, involuntary muscular contraction.
How do you pronounce "convulsion"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "convulsion" is /kənˈvʌlʃən/. 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 "convulsion"?
From Latin convulsiō, from convellō. 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 "convulsion", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 10 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Copernican#80,346commutator#80,335commandery#80,332cohomology#80,330

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list