distribution

/ˌdɪstɹəˈbjuːʃən/

//ˌdɪstɹəˈbjuːʃən// noun

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

"distribution" is a 12-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“distribution” has 19 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #2,290. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#2,290
frequency rank, English
3,470
“D” headwords
19
tracked misspellings
3
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An act of distributing or state of being distributed.

Corpus desk

Index EN-distribution · distribution · English

distribution · rank #2,290 · 19 variants · 3 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #2,290
  • LEN-MEGA 12 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 3 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 19 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,470
  • PHOTO-FINISH determined

Nearest frequency peer: determined (-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 “distribution”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “distribution” 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).

distribution vs distributor
83% similar
distribution vs distributive
83% similar
distribution vs distributing
83% similar

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

Key facts for distribution
PropertyValue
Headworddistribution
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˌdɪstɹəˈbjuːʃən/
Letters12
Frequency rank#2,290
Misspellings tracked19
Confusable pairs3
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “distribution”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).distributionlands 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 “determined” (#2,289), “documents” (#2,291), “debate” (#2,288). Among 3,470 “D” headwords, “distribution” is #2,290. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 19 spelling variants around distribution (IPA /ˌdɪstɹəˈbjuːʃən/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #2,290 among 3,470 “D” headwords. Wiktionary lists 17 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 19 likely wrong-spelling variants for distribution, with forms such as "ddistribution", "disrtibution", and "disstribution". 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 3 confusable-pair relationships, "distributor", "distributive", "distributing", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Old French, from Latin distributio, from distribuere 'to distribute', itself from dis- 'apart' + tribuere 'to' (from tribus). By surface analysis, distribute + -ion. The correct English form is distribution, spelled D-I-S-T-R-I-B-U-T-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    An act of distributing or state of being distributed.
  2. 2
    An apportionment by law (of funds, property).
  3. 3
    The process by which goods get to final consumers over a geographical market, including storing, selling, shipping and advertising.
  4. 4
    Anything distributed; portion; share.
  5. 5
    The result of distributing; arrangement.
  6. 6
    The total number of something sold or delivered to the clients.
  7. 7
    The frequency of occurrence or extent of existence.
  8. 8
    The apportionment of income or wealth in a population.
  9. 9
    The way in which a player's hand is divided in suits, or in which a particular suit is divided between the players.
  10. 10
    A probability distribution; the set of relative likelihoods that a variable will have a value in a given interval.
  11. 11
    A subset of the tangent bundle of a manifold that satisfies certain properties; used to construct the notions of integrability and foliation of a manifold.
  12. 12
    A set of bundled software components.
  13. 13
    The process or result of the sale of securities, especially their placement among investors with long-term investment strategies.
  14. 14
    The resolution of a whole into its parts.
  15. 15
    The process of sorting the types and placing them in their proper boxes in the cases.
  16. 16
    The steps or operations by which steam is supplied to and withdrawn from the cylinder at each stroke of the piston: admission, suppression or cutting off, release or exhaust, and compression of exhaust steam prior to the next admission.
  17. 17
    A rhetorical technique in which a subject is divided into multiple cases based on some property or properties, and each case is addressed individually.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. December 6, 1709, Francis Atterbury, a sermon preach'd before the sons of the clergy at their anniversary-meeting in the Church of St. Paul our charitable distributions
  2. A group of Thai researchers found the spider during an expedition to Phang-Nga province in southern Thailand to research the diversity and distribution of tarantulas in the country.

Etymology

From Old French, from Latin distributio, from distribuere 'to distribute', itself from dis- 'apart' + tribuere 'to' (from tribus). By surface analysis, distribute + -ion.

This word in other languages

distribución(Español)distribution(Français)Distribution(Deutsch)distribuição(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ddistribution
  • disrtibution
  • disstribution
  • distirbution
  • distrbiution
  • distribbution
  • distribtuion
  • distribuiton
  • distribusion
  • distributino
  • distributionn
  • distributoin
  • distributtion
  • distriubtion
  • distrribution
  • disttribution
  • ditsribution
  • dsitribution
  • idstribution

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ddistribution1disrtibution2disstribution1distirbution2distrbiution2distribbution1distribtuion2distribuiton2
Edit distance from "distribution"

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 "distribution"?
"distribution" is spelled D-I-S-T-R-I-B-U-T-I-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˌdɪstɹəˈbjuːʃən/.
What does "distribution" mean?
As a noun, "distribution" means: An act of distributing or state of being distributed.
What words are commonly confused with "distribution"?
"distribution" is commonly confused with "distributor", "distributive", "distributing". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "distribution"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "distribution" is /ˌdɪstɹəˈbjuːʃən/. 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 "distribution"?
From Old French, from Latin distributio, from distribuere 'to distribute', itself from dis- 'apart' + tribuere 'to' (from tribus). By surface analysis, distribute + -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.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "distribution", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 12 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

applications#2,279requirements#2,310specifically#2,269conservative#2,433

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (19 here; floor ≥5).

organizations19 variantscommunications19 variantsindependence19 variantsconstitution19 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list