intercession

noun

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

"intercession" is a 12-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“intercession” has 17 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #38,911. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#38,911
frequency rank, English
2,140
“I” headwords
17
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The act of intervening or mediating between two parties.

Corpus desk

Index EN-intercession · intercession · English

intercession · rank #38,911 · 17 variants · 2 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #38,911
  • LEN-MEGA 12 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 2 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 17 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,140
  • PHOTO-FINISH insufficiently

Nearest frequency peer: insufficiently (-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 “intercession”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “intercession” 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).

intercession vs intermission
83% similar
intercession vs interception
83% similar

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

Key facts for intercession
PropertyValue
Headwordintercession
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters12
Frequency rank#38,911
Misspellings tracked17
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “intercession”

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).intercessionlands here:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “insufficiently” (#38,910), “interferon” (#38,912), “instigate” (#38,909). Among 2,140 “I” headwords, “intercession” is #38,911. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 17 spelling variants around intercession, anoun. Corpus frequency is #38,911 among 2,140 “I” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 17 likely wrong-spelling variants for intercession, with forms such as "inetrcession", "inntercession", and "intecression". 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 2 confusable-pair relationships, "intermission", "interception", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: First attested in the early 15th Century. From Middle French intercession, from Old French intercession, from Latin intercessiō, from intercēdō, from inter- (“between”) + cēdō (“to go”) (English cede), literally “go-between”. The correct English form is intercession, spelled I-N-T-E-R-C-E-S-S-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    The act of intervening or mediating between two parties.
  2. 2
    A prayer to God on behalf of another person; especially, such a prayer offered by a heavenly saint on behalf of a mere mortal who has prayed to the saint for such help.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. Lady Marchmont found her companions in no mood for discourse. Her husband was asleep, and Ethel's languid voice was scarcely audible when she forced a reply to some trilling question; and Henrietta could perceive, from the convulsive movement, and from the short suppressed sob, that she was weeping. When they arrived at home, the light showed Ethel so pal…

Etymology

First attested in the early 15th Century. From Middle French intercession, from Old French intercession, from Latin intercessiō, from intercēdō, from inter- (“between”) + cēdō (“to go”) (English cede), literally “go-between”.

This word in other languages

intercesión(Español)intercession(Français)Fürbitte(Deutsch)intercessão(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • inetrcession
  • inntercession
  • intecression
  • interccession
  • intercesion
  • intercesison
  • intercessino
  • intercessionn
  • intercessoin
  • intercestion
  • intercsesion
  • interecssion
  • interrcession
  • intrecession
  • inttercession
  • itnercession
  • nitercession

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of intercession - 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.

inetrcession2inntercession1intecression2interccession1intercesion1intercesison2intercessino2intercessionn1
Edit distance from "intercession"

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 "intercession"?
"intercession" is spelled I-N-T-E-R-C-E-S-S-I-O-N.
What does "intercession" mean?
As a noun, "intercession" means: The act of intervening or mediating between two parties.
What words are commonly confused with "intercession"?
"intercession" is commonly confused with "intermission", "interception". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
What is the origin of the word "intercession"?
First attested in the early 15th Century. From Middle French intercession, from Old French intercession, from Latin intercessiō, from intercēdō, from inter- (“between”) + cēdō (“to go”) (English cede), literally “go-between”. 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 "intercession", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 12 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

inhospitable#38,907irritability#38,915indebtedness#38,903hysterectomy#38,893

Similar misspelling depth

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

improvising17 variantshyperactive17 variantsmountainside17 variantsculpability17 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list