irrigation

/ˌɪɹəˈɡeɪʃən/

//ˌɪɹəˈɡeɪʃən// noun

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

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

The verdict

“irrigation” has 13 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #11,407. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#11,407
frequency rank, English
2,140
“I” headwords
13
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The act or process of irrigating, or the state of being irrigated; especially, the operation of causing water to flow over lands, for nourishing plants.

Corpus desk

Index EN-irrigation · irrigation · English

irrigation · rank #11,407 · 13 variants · 1 confusable

  • FREQ-MID #11,407
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 1 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 13 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,140
  • PHOTO-FINISH IQ

Nearest frequency peer: IQ (-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 “irrigation”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “irrigation” 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).

irrigation vs irritation
90% similar

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

Key facts for irrigation
PropertyValue
Headwordirrigation
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˌɪɹəˈɡeɪʃən/
Letters10
Frequency rank#11,407
Misspellings tracked13
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “irrigation”

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).irrigationlands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “IQ” (#11,406), “iPod” (#11,405), “invasive” (#11,404). Among 2,140 “I” headwords, “irrigation” is #11,407. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 13 spelling variants around irrigation (IPA /ˌɪɹəˈɡeɪʃən/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #11,407 among 2,140 “I” headwords. Dominant gloss: "The act or process of irrigating, or the state of being irrigated; especially, the operation of causing water to flow over lands, for nourishing plants.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 13 likely wrong-spelling variants for irrigation, with forms such as "irigation", "irirgation", and "irrgiation". 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 1 confusable-pair relationship, "irritation", a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Middle French irrigation, from Latin irrigatio. The correct English form is irrigation, spelled I-R-R-I-G-A-T-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    The act or process of irrigating, or the state of being irrigated; especially, the operation of causing water to flow over lands, for nourishing plants.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. “My father had ideas about conservation long before the United States took it up.[…]You preserve water in times of flood and freshet to be used for power or for irrigation throughout the year. …”

Etymology

Borrowed from Middle French irrigation, from Latin irrigatio.

This word in other languages

riego(Español)irrigation(Français)Bewässerung(Deutsch)irrigação(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • irigation
  • irirgation
  • irrgiation
  • irriagtion
  • irrigaiton
  • irrigasion
  • irrigatino
  • irrigationn
  • irrigatoin
  • irrigattion
  • irriggation
  • irrigtaion
  • ririgation

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

irigation1irirgation2irrgiation2irriagtion2irrigaiton2irrigasion1irrigatino2irrigationn1
Edit distance from "irrigation"

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 "irrigation"?
"irrigation" is spelled I-R-R-I-G-A-T-I-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˌɪɹəˈɡeɪʃən/.
What does "irrigation" mean?
As a noun, "irrigation" means: The act or process of irrigating, or the state of being irrigated; especially, the operation of causing water to flow over lands, for nourishing plants.
What words are commonly confused with "irrigation"?
"irrigation" is commonly confused with "irritation". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "irrigation"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "irrigation" is /ˌɪɹəˈɡeɪʃən/. 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 "irrigation"?
Borrowed from Middle French irrigation, from Latin irrigatio. 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 "irrigation", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

intriguing#11,403manipulate#11,414hemisphere#11,392footballer#11,386

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (13 here; floor ≥5).

liberties13 variantslipstick13 variantsMidlands13 variantsforestry13 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list