education

/ˌɛd͡ʒ.ʊˈkeɪ.ʃn̩/

//ˌɛd͡ʒ.ʊˈkeɪ.ʃn̩// noun

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

The verdict

“education” is in the everyday core of English, ranked #526 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#526
frequency rank, English
9
letters
13
tracked misspellings
5
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The process of imparting knowledge, skill and judgment.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

education vs equation
78% similar
education vs educator
78% similar
education vs emulation
78% similar

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

Key facts for education
PropertyValue
Headwordeducation
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˌɛd͡ʒ.ʊˈkeɪ.ʃn̩/
Letters9
Frequency rank#526
Misspellings tracked13
Confusable pairs5
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “education” 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). education lands here:

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

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

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for education is 9 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˌɛd͡ʒ.ʊˈkeɪ.ʃn̩/. Corpus data places it at rank #526 in overall English word frequency, putting it firmly in the everyday core of the language. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 13 likely wrong-spelling variants for education, with forms such as "deucation", "edcuation", and "edducation". 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 5 confusable-pair relationships, "equation", "educator", "emulation", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Middle French éducation, from Latin ēducātiō (“a breeding, bringing up, rearing”), from ēducō (“to educate, train”), from ēdūcō (“to lead forth, to take out; to raise up, to erect”). See educate. Morphologically educate + -ion. The correct English form is education, spelled E-D-U-C-A-T-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    The process of imparting knowledge, skill and judgment.
  2. 2
    Facts, skills and ideas that have been learned, especially through formal instruction.
  3. 3
    Upbringing, rearing.

Etymology

Borrowed from Middle French éducation, from Latin ēducātiō (“a breeding, bringing up, rearing”), from ēducō (“to educate, train”), from ēdūcō (“to lead forth, to take out; to raise up, to erect”). See educate. Morphologically educate + -ion.

Synonyms

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: deucation,edcuation,edducation,eduaction,educaiton,educasion,educatino,educationn,educatoin,educattion,educcation,eductaion,eudcation

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

deucation2edcuation2edducation1eduaction2educaiton2educasion1educatino2educationn1
Edit distance from "education"

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 "education"?
"education" is spelled E-D-U-C-A-T-I-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˌɛd͡ʒ.ʊˈkeɪ.ʃn̩/.
What does "education" mean?
As a noun, "education" means: The process of imparting knowledge, skill and judgment.
What words are commonly confused with "education"?
"education" is commonly confused with "equation", "educator", "emulation". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "education"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "education" is /ˌɛd͡ʒ.ʊˈkeɪ.ʃn̩/. 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 "education"?
Borrowed from Middle French éducation, from Latin ēducātiō (“a breeding, bringing up, rearing”), from ēducō (“to educate, train”), from ēdūcō (“to lead forth, to take out; to raise up, to erect”). See educate. Morphologically educate + -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 “education”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is E-D-U-C-A-T-I-O-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˌɛd͡ʒ.ʊˈkeɪ.ʃn̩/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “equation” - see the side-by-side comparison. education vs equation
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
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