defection
/dɪˈfɛkʃən/noun
defection is spelled D-E-F-E-C-T-I-O-N: 9 letters and 3 syllables. It appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 32,393rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, defection means “An act or incidence of defecting” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of defection is defections.
How many letters and syllables are in defection?
| Letters | 9: D-E-F-E-C-T-I-O-N |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 1 million words; the 32,393rd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is defection?
Defection appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 32,393rd most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce defection?
- UK /dɪˈfɛkʃən/
Defection has 3 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-defection.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with defection?
One word on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as defection from its last stressed vowel (/ɛkʃən/, British pronunciation):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of defection
- defections plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does defection mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
An act or incidence of defecting.
military defection
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Defection in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense act or incidence of defecting:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | défection |
| German | Abtrünnigkeit, Treuebruch, Überlaufen |
| Portuguese | deserção, defeção |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does defection come from?
From Latin dēfectiō (stem dēfectiōn-).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).