instigation

/ˌɪnstɪˈɡeɪʃən/

//ˌɪnstɪˈɡeɪʃən// noun

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

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

The verdict

“instigation” has 17 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #44,272. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#44,272
frequency rank, English
2,140
“I” headwords
17
tracked misspellings
5
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The act of instigating, or the state of being instigated; incitement; especially to evil or wickedness.

Corpus desk

Index EN-instigation · instigation · English

instigation · rank #44,272 · 17 variants · 5 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #44,272
  • LEN-MEGA 11 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 5 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 17 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,140
  • PHOTO-FINISH insolence

Nearest frequency peer: insolence (-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 “instigation”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “instigation” 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).

instigation vs instigator
82% similar
instigation vs institution
82% similar
instigation vs investigation
85% similar

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

Key facts for instigation
PropertyValue
Headwordinstigation
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˌɪnstɪˈɡeɪʃən/
Letters11
Frequency rank#44,272
Misspellings tracked17
Confusable pairs5
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “instigation”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).instigationlands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “insolence” (#44,271), “irresponsibility” (#44,273), “inking” (#44,270). Among 2,140 “I” headwords, “instigation” is #44,272. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 17 spelling variants around instigation (IPA /ˌɪnstɪˈɡeɪʃən/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #44,272 among 2,140 “I” headwords. Dominant gloss: "The act of instigating, or the state of being instigated; incitement; especially to evil or wickedness.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 17 likely wrong-spelling variants for instigation, with forms such as "innstigation", "insitgation", and "insstigation". 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 5 confusable-pair relationships, "instigator", "institution", "investigation", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English instigacioun, from Old French instigacïon and Latin instīgātio. The correct English form is instigation, spelled I-N-S-T-I-G-A-T-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    The act of instigating, or the state of being instigated; incitement; especially to evil or wickedness.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. The departure was not unduly prolonged.[…]Within the door Mrs. Spoker hastily imparted to Mrs. Love a few final sentiments on the subject of Divine Intention in the disposition of buckets; farewells and last commiserations; a deep, guttural instigation to the horse; and the wheels of the waggonette crunched heavily away into obscurity.

Etymology

From Middle English instigacioun, from Old French instigacïon and Latin instīgātio.

This word in other languages

instigation(Français)Anstiftung(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • innstigation
  • insitgation
  • insstigation
  • instgiation
  • instiagtion
  • instigaiton
  • instigasion
  • instigatino
  • instigationn
  • instigatoin
  • instigattion
  • instiggation
  • instigtaion
  • insttigation
  • intsigation
  • isntigation
  • nistigation

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

innstigation1insitgation2insstigation1instgiation2instiagtion2instigaiton2instigasion1instigatino2
Edit distance from "instigation"

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 "instigation"?
"instigation" is spelled I-N-S-T-I-G-A-T-I-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˌɪnstɪˈɡeɪʃən/.
What does "instigation" mean?
As a noun, "instigation" means: The act of instigating, or the state of being instigated; incitement; especially to evil or wickedness.
What words are commonly confused with "instigation"?
"instigation" is commonly confused with "instigator", "institution", "investigation". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "instigation"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "instigation" is /ˌɪnstɪˈɡeɪʃən/. 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 "instigation"?
From Middle English instigacioun, from Old French instigacïon and Latin instīgātio. 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 "instigation", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

lipoprotein#44,308frankfurter#44,212Mecklenburg#44,332erratically#44,187

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (17 here; floor ≥5).

Macclesfield17 variantscourageously17 variantspremonition17 variantsblogosphere17 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list