indigestion

/ˌɪn.dɪˈdʒes.tʃən/

//ˌɪn.dɪˈdʒes.tʃən// noun

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

The verdict

“indigestion” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #35,353 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#35,353
frequency rank, English
11
letters
17
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A condition of heartburn, nausea, or other stomach-related pain, sometimes caused by eating too quickly.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

indigestion vs ingestion
82% similar
indigestion vs indignation
82% similar

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

Key facts for indigestion
PropertyValue
Headwordindigestion
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˌɪn.dɪˈdʒes.tʃən/
Letters11
Frequency rank#35,353
Misspellings tracked17
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “indigestion” 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). indigestion 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 indigestion is 11 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˌɪn.dɪˈdʒes.tʃən/. Corpus data places it at rank #35,353 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "A condition of heartburn, nausea, or other stomach-related pain, sometimes caused by eating too quickly.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 17 likely wrong-spelling variants for indigestion, with forms such as "idnigestion", "inddigestion", and "indgiestion". 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 2 confusable-pair relationships, "ingestion", "indignation", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English indigestioun, from Old French indigestion, from Late Latin indigestio, by surface analysis, in- + digestion. The correct English form is indigestion, spelled I-N-D-I-G-E-S-T-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    A condition of heartburn, nausea, or other stomach-related pain, sometimes caused by eating too quickly.

Etymology

From Middle English indigestioun, from Old French indigestion, from Late Latin indigestio, by surface analysis, in- + digestion.

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: idnigestion,inddigestion,indgiestion,indiegstion,indigesiton,indigession,indigesstion,indigestino,indigestionn,indigestoin,indigesttion,indigetsion,indiggestion,indigsetion,inidgestion,inndigestion,nidigestion

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

idnigestion2inddigestion1indgiestion2indiegstion2indigesiton2indigession1indigesstion1indigestino2
Edit distance from "indigestion"

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 "indigestion"?
"indigestion" is spelled I-N-D-I-G-E-S-T-I-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˌɪn.dɪˈdʒes.tʃən/.
What does "indigestion" mean?
As a noun, "indigestion" means: A condition of heartburn, nausea, or other stomach-related pain, sometimes caused by eating too quickly.
What words are commonly confused with "indigestion"?
"indigestion" is commonly confused with "ingestion", "indignation". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "indigestion"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "indigestion" is /ˌɪn.dɪˈdʒes.tʃən/. 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 "indigestion"?
From Middle English indigestioun, from Old French indigestion, from Late Latin indigestio, by surface analysis, in- + digestion. 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 “indigestion”

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

  • The one correct English spelling is I-N-D-I-G-E-S-T-I-O-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˌɪn.dɪˈdʒes.tʃən/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “ingestion” - see the side-by-side comparison. indigestion vs ingestion
  • 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