exacerbation

/ɪɡˈzæsɚˌbeɪʃən/

//ɪɡˈzæsɚˌbeɪʃən// noun

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

The verdict

“exacerbation” is uncommon English (frequency #69,831 among 2,246 “E” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#69,831
frequency rank, English
2,246
“E” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An increase in the severity of something (such as a disease)

Corpus desk

Index EN-exacerbation · exacerbation · English

exacerbation · rank #69,831 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #69,831
  • LEN-MEGA 12 letters
  • VOW-6 6 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,246
  • PHOTO-FINISH excitability

Nearest frequency peer: excitability (+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 “exacerbation”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for exacerbation
PropertyValue
Headwordexacerbation
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ɪɡˈzæsɚˌbeɪʃən/
Letters12
Frequency rank#69,831
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “exacerbation” in English

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).exacerbationfalls in this rarity band:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “excitability” (#69,832), “entrainment” (#69,828), “existance” (#69,834). Among 2,246 “E” headwords, “exacerbation” is #69,831. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

exacerbation is uncommon English at frequency #69,831 among 2,246 “E” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ɪɡˈzæsɚˌbeɪʃən/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "An increase in the severity of something (such as a disease)".

exacerbation has no tracked misspelling variants, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English exacerbacyoun, from Latin exacerbātiōnem, from exacerbāre (“to provoke, make harsh”). See exacerbate. The correct English form is exacerbation, spelled E-X-A-C-E-R-B-A-T-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    An increase in the severity of something (such as a disease)

Etymology

From Middle English exacerbacyoun, from Latin exacerbātiōnem, from exacerbāre (“to provoke, make harsh”). See exacerbate.

Synonyms

Antonyms

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 "exacerbation"?
"exacerbation" is spelled E-X-A-C-E-R-B-A-T-I-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ɪɡˈzæsɚˌbeɪʃən/.
What does "exacerbation" mean?
As a noun, "exacerbation" means: An increase in the severity of something (such as a disease)
How do you pronounce "exacerbation"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "exacerbation" is /ɪɡˈzæsɚˌbeɪʃən/. 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 "exacerbation"?
From Middle English exacerbacyoun, from Latin exacerbātiōnem, from exacerbāre (“to provoke, make harsh”). See exacerbate. 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 "exacerbation", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list