denigration

noun

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

"denigration" is a 11-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“denigration” is uncommon English (frequency #71,441 among 26,416 “D” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#71,441
frequency rank, English
26,416
“D” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The act of making black; a blackening or defamation.

Key facts for denigration
PropertyValue
Headworddenigration
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters11
Frequency rank#71,441
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “denigration” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). denigration lands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

denigration is uncommon English at frequency #71,441 among 26,416 “D” headwords, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

No misspelling variants are generated for denigration in our index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: By surface analysis, denigrate + -ion. The correct English form is denigration, spelled D-E-N-I-G-R-A-T-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    The act of making black; a blackening or defamation.
  2. 2
    An unfair criticism.

Etymology

By surface analysis, denigrate + -ion.

This word in other languages

denigración(Español)dénigrement(Français)Verunglimpfung(Deutsch)

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 "denigration"?
"denigration" is spelled D-E-N-I-G-R-A-T-I-O-N.
What does "denigration" mean?
As a noun, "denigration" means: The act of making black; a blackening or defamation.
What is the origin of the word "denigration"?
By surface analysis, denigrate + -ion. 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.

Using “denigration”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is D-E-N-I-G-R-A-T-I-O-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words

Other uncommon English words near this rank

Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list