defamation

/ˌdɛfəˈmeɪʃən/

//ˌdɛfəˈmeɪʃən// noun

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

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

The verdict

“defamation” has 15 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #17,586. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#17,586
frequency rank, English
3,470
“D” headwords
15
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The act of injuring another person's reputation by any slanderous communication, written or oral; the wrong of maliciously injuring the good name of another.

Corpus desk

Index EN-defamation · defamation · English

defamation · rank #17,586 · 15 variants · 2 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #17,586
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 2 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 15 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,470
  • PHOTO-FINISH deceive

Nearest frequency peer: deceive (-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 “defamation”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “defamation” 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).

defamation vs deflation
80% similar
defamation vs deformation
82% similar

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

Key facts for defamation
PropertyValue
Headworddefamation
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˌdɛfəˈmeɪʃən/
Letters10
Frequency rank#17,586
Misspellings tracked15
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “defamation”

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).defamationlands 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 “deceive” (#17,585), “Czechoslovakia” (#17,583), “cutler” (#17,582). Among 3,470 “D” headwords, “defamation” is #17,586. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 15 spelling variants around defamation (IPA /ˌdɛfəˈmeɪʃən/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #17,586 among 3,470 “D” headwords. Dominant gloss: "The act of injuring another person's reputation by any slanderous communication, written or oral; the wrong of maliciously injuring the good name of another.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 15 likely wrong-spelling variants for defamation, with forms such as "ddefamation", "deafmation", and "defaamtion". 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, "deflation", "deformation", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Old French diffamacion (French diffamation), from Latin diffāmātiō. By surface analysis, defame + -ation. The correct English form is defamation, spelled D-E-F-A-M-A-T-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    The act of injuring another person's reputation by any slanderous communication, written or oral; the wrong of maliciously injuring the good name of another.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. She sued his ex-boyfriend for defamation and is seeking $14,000.
  2. In a closed trial on December 24, 2004, the People’s Court of Jinshui District in the city of Zhengzhou, Henan Province, convicted Zhang Ruquan, along with his associate Zhang Zhengyao, in a public prosecution on charges of defamation that “seriously undermined social order or the state interest.” The two were sentenced to three years in prison for defami…

Etymology

From Old French diffamacion (French diffamation), from Latin diffāmātiō. By surface analysis, defame + -ation.

Synonyms

aspersioncalumnydetractionfalse lightlibelslanderaftertale

This word in other languages

difamación(Español)diffamation(Français)Verleumdung(Deutsch)difamação(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ddefamation
  • deafmation
  • defaamtion
  • defamaiton
  • defamasion
  • defamatino
  • defamationn
  • defamatoin
  • defamattion
  • defammation
  • defamtaion
  • deffamation
  • defmaation
  • dfeamation
  • edfamation

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ddefamation1deafmation2defaamtion2defamaiton2defamasion1defamatino2defamationn1defamatoin2
Edit distance from "defamation"

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 "defamation"?
"defamation" is spelled D-E-F-A-M-A-T-I-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˌdɛfəˈmeɪʃən/.
What does "defamation" mean?
As a noun, "defamation" means: The act of injuring another person's reputation by any slanderous communication, written or oral; the wrong of maliciously injuring the good name of another.
What words are commonly confused with "defamation"?
"defamation" is commonly confused with "deflation", "deformation". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "defamation"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "defamation" is /ˌdɛfəˈmeɪʃən/. 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 "defamation"?
From Old French diffamacion (French diffamation), from Latin diffāmātiō. By surface analysis, defame + -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 "defamation", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

compressor#17,573advertiser#17,533vigorously#17,516manageable#17,667

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (15 here; floor ≥5).

downright15 variantscaterpillar15 variantsstandalone15 variantsmisfortune15 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list