delegation

/dɛlɪˈɡeɪʃən/

//dɛlɪˈɡeɪʃən// noun

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

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

The verdict

“delegation” has 15 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #8,023. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#8,023
frequency rank, English
3,470
“D” headwords
15
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

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

Corpus desk

Index EN-delegation · delegation · English

delegation · rank #8,023 · 15 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-COMMON #8,023
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 15 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,470
  • PHOTO-FINISH debris

Nearest frequency peer: debris (-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 “delegation”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “delegation” 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).

delegation vs deletion
80% similar

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

Key facts for delegation
PropertyValue
Headworddelegation
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/dɛlɪˈɡeɪʃən/
Letters10
Frequency rank#8,023
Misspellings tracked15
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “delegation”

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).delegationlands 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 “debris” (#8,022), “demographic” (#8,024), “crane” (#8,021). Among 3,470 “D” headwords, “delegation” is #8,023. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 15 spelling variants around delegation (IPA /dɛlɪˈɡeɪʃən/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #8,023 among 3,470 “D” headwords. Wiktionary lists 4 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 15 likely wrong-spelling variants for delegation, with forms such as "ddelegation", "deelgation", and "deleagtion". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 1 confusable-pair relationship, "deletion", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Latin dēlēgātiō, dēlēgātiōnis, from dēlēgō: compare French délégation. The correct English form is delegation, spelled D-E-L-E-G-A-T-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    An act of delegating.
  2. 2
    A group of delegates.
  3. 3
    A method-dispatching technique describing the lookup and inheritance rules for self-referential calls.
  4. 4
    The act whereby or constellation in which the performance of an obligation (owed to an obligee, presuming its validity; irrespective of the obligation as the target of the delegation, rarely called delegatary) is assigned by its debtor (delegator, obligor) to and towards another party (delegatee, delegate)

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Decentralisation of the railways was provided for by the establishment of Area Boards for each Region, which began to function on January 1, 1955, and by the extended delegation of powers to the Boards and their General Managers; […].
  2. the American delegation

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin dēlēgātiō, dēlēgātiōnis, from dēlēgō: compare French délégation.

This word in other languages

delegación(Español)délégation(Français)Abordnung(Deutsch)delegação(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ddelegation
  • deelgation
  • deleagtion
  • delegaiton
  • delegasion
  • delegatino
  • delegationn
  • delegatoin
  • delegattion
  • deleggation
  • delegtaion
  • delgeation
  • dellegation
  • dleegation
  • edlegation

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of delegation - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

ddelegation1deelgation2deleagtion2delegaiton2delegasion1delegatino2delegationn1delegatoin2
Edit distance from "delegation"

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 "delegation"?
"delegation" is spelled D-E-L-E-G-A-T-I-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /dɛlɪˈɡeɪʃən/.
What does "delegation" mean?
As a noun, "delegation" means: An act of delegating.
What words are commonly confused with "delegation"?
"delegation" is commonly confused with "deletion". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "delegation"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "delegation" is /dɛlɪˈɡeɪʃən/. 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 "delegation"?
Borrowed from Latin dēlēgātiō, dēlēgātiōnis, from dēlēgō: compare French délégation. 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 "delegation", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

enrollment#8,031forgetting#8,037inequality#8,049manuscript#8,062

Similar misspelling depth

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

expressions15 variantsresearcher15 variantssubsidiary15 variantsunderwater15 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list