dysphagia

/dɪsˈfeɪ̯d͡ʒ(i)ə/

//dɪsˈfeɪ̯d͡ʒ(i)ə// noun

"dysphagia" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“dysphagia” is uncommon English (frequency #77,625 among 3,470 “D” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#77,625
frequency rank, English
3,470
“D” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Difficulty in swallowing.

Corpus desk

Index EN-dysphagia · dysphagia · English

dysphagia · rank #77,625 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #77,625
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,470
  • PHOTO-FINISH Duras

Nearest frequency peer: Duras (-2 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.

Long-tail ranks near “dysphagia”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “dysphagia” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for dysphagia
PropertyValue
Headworddysphagia
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/dɪsˈfeɪ̯d͡ʒ(i)ə/
Letters9
Frequency rank#77,625
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “dysphagia” in English

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).dysphagiafalls in this rarity band:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Rare peers in the same band: “Duras” (#77,623), “Duolingo” (#77,622), “ebullient” (#77,628). Among 3,470 “D” headwords, “dysphagia” is #77,625. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

dysphagia is uncommon English at frequency #77,625 among 3,470 “D” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /dɪsˈfeɪ̯d͡ʒ(i)ə/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Difficulty in swallowing.".

dysphagia has no tracked misspelling variants, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: From dys- + -phagia. The correct English form is dysphagia, spelled D-Y-S-P-H-A-G-I-A.

Definition

  1. 1
    Difficulty in swallowing.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. If the sensory branches of the laryngeal nerve (superior laryngeal nerve) are paralysed, the danger is great, for the patients, owing to the abolished reflex action, are prone to misswallow (dysphagia) , and become subject to "foreign body pneumonia."

Etymology

From dys- + -phagia.

Synonyms

This word in other languages

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 "dysphagia"?
"dysphagia" is spelled D-Y-S-P-H-A-G-I-A. The IPA pronunciation is /dɪsˈfeɪ̯d͡ʒ(i)ə/.
What does "dysphagia" mean?
As a noun, "dysphagia" means: Difficulty in swallowing.
How do you pronounce "dysphagia"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "dysphagia" is /dɪsˈfeɪ̯d͡ʒ(i)ə/. 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 "dysphagia"?
From dys- + -phagia. 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 "dysphagia", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list