insubordination

noun

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

"insubordination" is a 15-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“insubordination” has 23 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #43,719. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#43,719
frequency rank, English
2,140
“I” headwords
23
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The quality or state of being insubordinate; disobedience to lawful authority; specifically, an employee's failure or refusal to comply with a request or an assignment given by his/her supervisor.

Corpus desk

Index EN-insubordination · insubordination · English

insubordination · rank #43,719 · 23 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #43,719
  • LEN-MEGA 15 letters
  • VOW-7 7 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 23 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,140
  • PHOTO-FINISH instigator

Nearest frequency peer: instigator (-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 “insubordination”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “insubordination” 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
Key facts for insubordination
PropertyValue
Headwordinsubordination
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters15
Frequency rank#43,719
Misspellings tracked23
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “insubordination”

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).insubordinationlands 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 “instigator” (#43,718), “intercity” (#43,720), “insincere” (#43,717). Among 2,140 “I” headwords, “insubordination” is #43,719. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 23 spelling variants around insubordination, anoun. Corpus frequency is #43,719 among 2,140 “I” headwords. Dominant gloss: "The quality or state of being insubordinate; disobedience to lawful authority; specifically, an employee's failure or refusal to comply with a request or an assignment given by his/her supervisor.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 23 likely wrong-spelling variants for insubordination, with forms such as "innsubordination", "insbuordination", and "inssubordination". 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. Our dataset records no confusable match here, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

Etymologically, the entry records: From in- + subordination, on the model of French insubordination. The correct English form is insubordination, spelled I-N-S-U-B-O-R-D-I-N-A-T-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    The quality or state of being insubordinate; disobedience to lawful authority; specifically, an employee's failure or refusal to comply with a request or an assignment given by his/her supervisor.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. Green, who served as a technical manager in the network's Washington bureau, charged in her suit that she was subject to "repeated acts of insubordination by white male engineers and technicians, with the effect of the erosion and undermining of [her] ability to carry out her duties as supervisor."

Etymology

From in- + subordination, on the model of French insubordination.

This word in other languages

insubordination(Français)Befehlsverweigerung(Deutsch)insubordinação(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • innsubordination
  • insbuordination
  • inssubordination
  • insubbordination
  • insubodrination
  • insuborddination
  • insubordiantion
  • insubordinaiton
  • insubordinasion
  • insubordinatino
  • insubordinationn
  • insubordinatoin
  • insubordinattion
  • insubordinnation
  • insubordintaion
  • insubordniation
  • insuboridnation
  • insuborrdination
  • insubrodination
  • insuobrdination
  • inusbordination
  • isnubordination
  • nisubordination

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of insubordination - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

innsubordination1insbuordination2inssubordination1insubbordination1insubodrination2insuborddination1insubordiantion2insubordinaiton2
Edit distance from "insubordination"

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 "insubordination"?
"insubordination" is spelled I-N-S-U-B-O-R-D-I-N-A-T-I-O-N.
What does "insubordination" mean?
As a noun, "insubordination" means: The quality or state of being insubordinate; disobedience to lawful authority; specifically, an employee's failure or refusal to comply with a request or an assignment given by his/her supervisor.
What are common misspellings of "insubordination"?
Common misspellings include "innsubordination", "insbuordination", "inssubordination", "insubbordination", "insubodrination". The correct spelling is "insubordination".
What is the origin of the word "insubordination"?
From in- + subordination, on the model of French insubordination. 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 "insubordination", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 15 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

nationalisation#43,802pathophysiology#43,831trustworthiness#43,433physiotherapist#43,310

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (23 here; floor ≥5).

irresponsibility23 variantsmarginalization23 variantsproportionality23 variantsproportionately23 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list