inflection

/ɪnˈflɛkʃən/

//ɪnˈflɛkʃən// noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"inflection" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“inflection” has 16 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #33,686. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#33,686
frequency rank, English
2,140
“I” headwords
16
tracked misspellings
6
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The linguistic phenomenon of morphological variation, whereby terms take a number of distinct forms in order to express different grammatical features.

Corpus desk

Index EN-inflection · inflection · English

inflection · rank #33,686 · 16 variants · 6 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #33,686
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 6 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 16 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,140
  • PHOTO-FINISH innocently

Nearest frequency peer: innocently (+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.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “inflection”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “inflection” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

inflection vs injection
80% similar
inflection vs inspection
80% similar
inflection vs infraction
80% similar

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

Key facts for inflection
PropertyValue
Headwordinflection
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ɪnˈflɛkʃən/
Letters10
Frequency rank#33,686
Misspellings tracked16
Confusable pairs6
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “inflection”

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

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “innocently” (#33,687), “indeterminate” (#33,684), “inroads” (#33,688). Among 2,140 “I” headwords, “inflection” is #33,686. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 16 spelling variants around inflection (IPA /ɪnˈflɛkʃən/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #33,686 among 2,140 “I” headwords. Wiktionary lists 8 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 16 likely wrong-spelling variants for inflection, with forms such as "ifnlection", "infelction", and "infflection". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 6 confusable-pair relationships, "injection", "inspection", "infraction", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From older inflexion, borrowed from Middle French inflexion, itself borrowed from Latin inflexiōnem (“alteration”, literally “bending”). The English spelling with ⟨ct⟩ is due to influence from inflect or related words like correction. The correct English form is inflection, spelled I-N-F-L-E-C-T-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    The linguistic phenomenon of morphological variation, whereby terms take a number of distinct forms in order to express different grammatical features.
  2. 2
    The linguistic phenomenon of morphological variation, whereby terms take a number of distinct forms in order to express different grammatical features.
  3. 3
    The linguistic phenomenon of morphological variation, whereby terms take a number of distinct forms in order to express different grammatical features.
  4. 4
    The linguistic phenomenon of morphological variation, whereby terms take a number of distinct forms in order to express different grammatical features.
  5. 5
    A change in pitch or tone of voice.
  6. 6
    A change in curvature from concave to convex or from convex to concave.
  7. 7
    A turning away from a straight course.
  8. 8
    Diffraction.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. In English, word order often does the work that inflection did in Latin.
  2. The second-person imperative is a verbal inflection found in many Indo-European languages.

Etymology

From older inflexion, borrowed from Middle French inflexion, itself borrowed from Latin inflexiōnem (“alteration”, literally “bending”). The English spelling with ⟨ct⟩ is due to influence from inflect or related words like correction.

Synonyms

flectionflexion

This word in other languages

flexión(Español)flexion(Français)Flexion(Deutsch)flexão(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ifnlection
  • infelction
  • infflection
  • inflcetion
  • inflecction
  • infleciton
  • inflecsion
  • inflectino
  • inflectionn
  • inflectoin
  • inflecttion
  • infletcion
  • infllection
  • inlfection
  • innflection
  • niflection

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ifnlection2infelction2infflection1inflcetion2inflecction1infleciton2inflecsion1inflectino2
Edit distance from "inflection"

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 "inflection"?
"inflection" is spelled I-N-F-L-E-C-T-I-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ɪnˈflɛkʃən/.
What does "inflection" mean?
As a noun, "inflection" means: The linguistic phenomenon of morphological variation, whereby terms take a number of distinct forms in order to express different grammatical features.
What words are commonly confused with "inflection"?
"inflection" is commonly confused with "injection", "inspection", "infraction". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "inflection"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "inflection" is /ɪnˈflɛkʃən/. 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 "inflection"?
From older inflexion, borrowed from Middle French inflexion, itself borrowed from Latin inflexiōnem (“alteration”, literally “bending”). The English spelling with ⟨ct⟩ is due to influence from inflect or related words like correction. 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 "inflection", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 10 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

innocently#33,687impervious#33,680humanistic#33,676harnessing#33,672

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (16 here; floor ≥5).

kickboxing16 variantshandsomely16 variantsdirectorial16 variantsparadoxical16 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list