illustration
il·lus·tra·tion/ˌɪləsˈtɹeɪ̯ʃən/noun
illustration is spelled I-L-L-U-S-T-R-A-T-I-O-N: 12 letters and 4 syllables (il·lus·tra·tion). It appears 8.3 times per million words in written English, the 8,036th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, illustration means “The act of illustrating; the act of making clear and distinct” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of illustration is illustrations.
How many letters and syllables are in illustration?
| Letters | 12: I-L-L-U-S-T-R-A-T-I-O-N |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 4: il·lus·tra·tion |
| In writing | 8.3 times per million words; the 8,036th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is illustration?
Illustration appears 8.3 times per million words in written English, the 8,036th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce illustration?
- /ˌɪləsˈtɹeɪ̯ʃən/
- [ˌɪləsˈtɹ̝̊ʷeɪ̯ʃən]
- [ˌɪləsˈt̠ɹ̠̊˔ʷeɪ̯ʃən]
Illustration has 4 syllables, split il·lus·tra·tion in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-illustration.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of illustration
- illustrations plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does illustration mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
The act of illustrating; the act of making clear and distinct.
- 2
The state of being illustrated, or of being made clear and distinct.
- 3
Something which illustrates; a comparison or example intended to make clear or apprehensible, or to remove obscurity.
- 4
A picture designed to decorate a publication, or elucidate a literary work.
The illustration showing the water cycle made it much easier to understand for the children.
- 5
A calculated prevision of insurance premiums and returns (life insurance).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
How do you abbreviate illustration?
Wiktionary records 3 abbreviations of illustration: illus, illus., illust..
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Illustration in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| German | Illustration |
| Portuguese | ilustração |
| French | illustration, représentation |
| Spanish | ejemplo, ilustración, instrucción, estampa |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does illustration come from?
Borrowed from Middle French illustration, from Latin illūstrātiō, from illūstrō (“to illustrate”). By surface analysis, illustrate + -ion.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).