meditation

/mɛdɪˈteɪʃn̩/

//mɛdɪˈteɪʃn̩// noun

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

The verdict

“meditation” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #7,714 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#7,714
frequency rank, English
10
letters
15
tracked misspellings
3
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A devotional exercise of, or leading to, contemplation.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

meditation vs meditative
80% similar
meditation vs mediation
90% similar
meditation vs medication
90% similar

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

Key facts for meditation
PropertyValue
Headwordmeditation
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/mɛdɪˈteɪʃn̩/
Letters10
Frequency rank#7,714
Misspellings tracked15
Confusable pairs3
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “meditation” sits in English frequency

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for meditation is 10 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /mɛdɪˈteɪʃn̩/. Corpus data places it at rank #7,714 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 5 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 15 likely wrong-spelling variants for meditation, with forms such as "emditation", "mdeitation", and "medditation". 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 3 confusable-pair relationships, "meditative", "mediation", "medication", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Old French meditacion, from Latin meditatio, from meditatus, the past participle of meditārī (“to meditate, to think over, consider”), itself from Proto-Indo-European *med- (“to measure, limit, consider, advise”). The correct English form is meditation, spelled M-E-D-I-T-A-T-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    A devotional exercise of, or leading to, contemplation.
  2. 2
    Any of various types of achieving more or less altered states of consciousness, such as vacancy of mind or prolonged contemplation on a single sensation or thought, through relaxed or focused mental and physical activity generally of a nonstrenuous and non–substance-induced nature.
  3. 3
    A contemplative discourse, often on a religious or philosophical subject.
  4. 4
    A musical theme treated in a meditative manner.
  5. 5
    Careful and thorough thought.

Etymology

From Old French meditacion, from Latin meditatio, from meditatus, the past participle of meditārī (“to meditate, to think over, consider”), itself from Proto-Indo-European *med- (“to measure, limit, consider, advise”).

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: emditation,mdeitation,medditation,mediattion,meditaiton,meditasion,meditatino,meditationn,meditatoin,meditattion,medittaion,medittation,medtiation,meidtation,mmeditation

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

emditation2mdeitation2medditation1mediattion2meditaiton2meditasion1meditatino2meditationn1
Edit distance from "meditation"

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 "meditation"?
"meditation" is spelled M-E-D-I-T-A-T-I-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /mɛdɪˈteɪʃn̩/.
What does "meditation" mean?
As a noun, "meditation" means: A devotional exercise of, or leading to, contemplation.
What words are commonly confused with "meditation"?
"meditation" is commonly confused with "meditative", "mediation", "medication". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "meditation"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "meditation" is /mɛdɪˈteɪʃn̩/. 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 "meditation"?
From Old French meditacion, from Latin meditatio, from meditatus, the past participle of meditārī (“to meditate, to think over, consider”), itself from Proto-Indo-European *med- (“to measure, limit, consider, advise”). 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.

Using “meditation”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is M-E-D-I-T-A-T-I-O-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /mɛdɪˈteɪʃn̩/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “meditative” - see the side-by-side comparison. meditation vs meditative
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list