echolocation

/ˌɛkoʊloʊˈkeɪʃən/

//ˌɛkoʊloʊˈkeɪʃən// noun

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

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

The verdict

“echolocation” is uncommon English (frequency #64,344 among 2,246 “E” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#64,344
frequency rank, English
2,246
“E” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The use of echoes to detect objects as observed in bats and other natural creatures.

Corpus desk

Index EN-echolocation · echolocation · English

echolocation · rank #64,344 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #64,344
  • LEN-MEGA 12 letters
  • VOW-6 6 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,246
  • PHOTO-FINISH eclecticism

Nearest frequency peer: eclecticism (+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.

Long-tail ranks near “echolocation”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for echolocation
PropertyValue
Headwordecholocation
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˌɛkoʊloʊˈkeɪʃən/
Letters12
Frequency rank#64,344
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “echolocation” in English

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).echolocationfalls in this rarity band:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Rare peers in the same band: “eclecticism” (#64,345), “ECP” (#64,346), “ehm” (#64,347). Among 2,246 “E” headwords, “echolocation” is #64,344. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

echolocation is uncommon English at frequency #64,344 among 2,246 “E” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˌɛkoʊloʊˈkeɪʃən/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "The use of echoes to detect objects as observed in bats and other natural creatures.".

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for echolocation, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable English rules. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: Coined by American zoologist Donald Griffin in 1944, from echo- + location. The correct English form is echolocation, spelled E-C-H-O-L-O-C-A-T-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    The use of echoes to detect objects as observed in bats and other natural creatures.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Since there is no convenient term available to describe this process of locating obstacles by means of echoes, I suggest the word echolocation[…]. The meaning of this word, and a corresponding verb to echolocate, are likely to be clear when first heard or read, since they are formed simply by joining echo and locate. It seems best to accent the first syll…
  2. Now similarly with the aquatic mammals, we know that they can make sounds. We are beginning to get information—although no curves yet—on their sensitivity of hearing. These need to be followed up and we should look for this process of echo-ranging or echolocation.

Etymology

Coined by American zoologist Donald Griffin in 1944, from echo- + location.

This word in other languages

écholocation(Français)

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 "echolocation"?
"echolocation" is spelled E-C-H-O-L-O-C-A-T-I-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˌɛkoʊloʊˈkeɪʃən/.
What does "echolocation" mean?
As a noun, "echolocation" means: The use of echoes to detect objects as observed in bats and other natural creatures.
How do you pronounce "echolocation"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "echolocation" is /ˌɛkoʊloʊˈkeɪʃən/. 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 "echolocation"?
Coined by American zoologist Donald Griffin in 1944, from echo- + location. 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 "echolocation", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

dopaminergic#64,328exchangeable#64,365disembarking#64,317hypothalamic#64,433

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list