Skip to main content
PlainSpell

distraction

dis·tract·ion/dɪsˈtɹæk.ʃən/noun

distraction is spelled D-I-S-T-R-A-C-T-I-O-N: 11 letters and 3 syllables (dis·tract·ion). It appears 6.0 times per million words in written English, the 9,878th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, distraction means “Something that distracts” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of distraction is distractions.

How many letters and syllables are in distraction?

Letters11: D-I-S-T-R-A-C-T-I-O-N
Syllables3: dis·tract·ion
In writing6.0 times per million words; the 9,878th most frequent word form
Wrong spellings searchednone measured in search

Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).

How common is distraction?

Distraction appears 6.0 times per million words in written English, the 9,878th 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 distraction?

  • /dɪsˈtɹæk.ʃən/

Distraction has 3 syllables, split dis·tract·ion in writing.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-distraction.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).

Forms of distraction

  • distractions plural

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What does distraction mean?

The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).

noun

  1. 1

    Something that distracts.

    Poking one's eye is a good distraction from a hurting toe.

  2. 2

    The process of being distracted.

    We have to reduce distraction in class if we want students to achieve good results.

  3. 3

    Perturbation; disorder; disturbance; confusion.

    It's true that the Copernican Systeme introduceth distraction in the universe of Aristotle.

  4. 4

    Mental disarray; a deranged state of mind; insanity.

    The incessant nightmares drove him to distraction.

  5. 5

    archaicTraction so exerted as to separate surfaces normally opposed.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

Distraction in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese

LanguageWords
Frenchdistraction (something that distracts), folie (mental disorder)
GermanAblenkung, Ablenkungsmanöver (something that distracts), Wahnsinn (mental disorder), Störung, Zerstreuung (the process of being distracted)
Portuguesedistracção, distração (something that distracts)
Spanishdistracción (something that distracts), locura (mental disorder)

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 distraction come from?

Borrowed from Middle French distraction, from Latin distractio. Equivalent to distract + -ion.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What to look up after distraction