explication

noun

"explication" is a 11-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“explication” is uncommon English (frequency #79,502 among 2,246 “E” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#79,502
frequency rank, English
2,246
“E” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The act of opening or unfolding.

Corpus desk

Index EN-explication · explication · English

explication · rank #79,502 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #79,502
  • LEN-MEGA 11 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,246
  • PHOTO-FINISH factoid

Nearest frequency peer: factoid (+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 “explication”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for explication
PropertyValue
Headwordexplication
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters11
Frequency rank#79,502
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “explication” 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).explicationfalls 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: “factoid” (#79,503), “evanescent” (#79,500), “fallibility” (#79,504). Among 2,246 “E” headwords, “explication” is #79,502. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

explication is uncommon English at frequency #79,502 among 2,246 “E” headwords, classed as anoun. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

Zero misspellings are on record for explication in our index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Middle French explication, from Latin explicatio, explicationem. The correct English form is explication, spelled E-X-P-L-I-C-A-T-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    The act of opening or unfolding.
  2. 2
    The act of explaining; an explanation.
  3. 3
    The sense given by an expositor.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. Her anthemic "Who Stands For Life" is a powerful explication of what it means to be "pro-life".

Etymology

Borrowed from Middle French explication, from Latin explicatio, explicationem.

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 "explication"?
"explication" is spelled E-X-P-L-I-C-A-T-I-O-N.
What does "explication" mean?
As a noun, "explication" means: The act of opening or unfolding.
What is the origin of the word "explication"?
Borrowed from Middle French explication, from Latin explicatio, explicationem. 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 "explication", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 11 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list