occultation

/ˌɒkəlˈteɪʃ(ə)n/

//ˌɒkəlˈteɪʃ(ə)n// noun

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

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

The verdict

“occultation” is uncommon English (frequency #88,670 among 1,431 “O” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#88,670
frequency rank, English
1,431
“O” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - An astronomical event that occurs when one celestial object is hidden by another celestial object that passes between it and the observer when the nearer object appears larger and completely hides ...

Corpus desk

Index EN-occultation · occultation · English

occultation · rank #88,670 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #88,670
  • LEN-MEGA 11 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,431
  • PHOTO-FINISH Oishi

Nearest frequency peer: Oishi (+3 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.

Long-tail ranks near “occultation”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “occultation” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for occultation
PropertyValue
Headwordoccultation
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˌɒkəlˈteɪʃ(ə)n/
Letters11
Frequency rank#88,670
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “occultation” in English

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

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Rare peers in the same band: “Oishi” (#88,673), “oldtown” (#88,674), “Nureyev” (#88,665). Among 1,431 “O” headwords, “occultation” is #88,670. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

occultation is uncommon English at frequency #88,670 among 1,431 “O” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˌɒkəlˈteɪʃ(ə)n/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for occultation, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Latin occultātiōnem, accusative singular of occultātiō (“concealment; insinuation”), from occultāre, present active infinitive of occultō (“to conceal, hide”); analysable as occult + -ation. The correct English form is occultation, spelled O-C-C-U-L-T-A-T-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    An astronomical event that occurs when one celestial object is hidden by another celestial object that passes between it and the observer when the nearer object appears larger and completely hides the more distant object.
  2. 2
    The state of being occult (“hidden, undetected”).
  3. 3
    The disappearance of the Twelfth Imam, or Mahdi, who is believed alive and present in this world, but hidden until his reappearance at the end of time.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. [T]he diſtance of any place within this kingdom from it, will not much vary the manner of their Appearance in any of the Phænomena, except the Eclipſe of the Sun: for, in the Occultations, the Stars will appeare to paſs nearly under the ſame Angles and Spots of the Moon; […]
  2. The bright star Aldebaran is to be occulted by the moon on December 20th, at about 5 o'clock pm. Aldebaran is said to be eight hundred and eighty times the mass of the sun, with a diameter of over 8,000,000 miles; a distance so great that a meteor traveling at the rate of thirty miles per second, would require over three days to cross the disk of the star…

Etymology

From Latin occultātiōnem, accusative singular of occultātiō (“concealment; insinuation”), from occultāre, present active infinitive of occultō (“to conceal, hide”); analysable as occult + -ation.

This word in other languages

ocultación(Español)occultation(Français)Bedeckung(Deutsch)ocultação(Português)

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 "occultation"?
"occultation" is spelled O-C-C-U-L-T-A-T-I-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˌɒkəlˈteɪʃ(ə)n/.
What does "occultation" mean?
As a noun, "occultation" means: An astronomical event that occurs when one celestial object is hidden by another celestial object that passes between it and the observer when the nearer object appears larger and completely hides ...
How do you pronounce "occultation"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "occultation" is /ˌɒkəlˈteɪʃ(ə)n/. 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 "occultation"?
From Latin occultātiōnem, accusative singular of occultātiō (“concealment; insinuation”), from occultāre, present active infinitive of occultō (“to conceal, hide”); analysable as occult + -ation. 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 "occultation", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

omnichannel#88,675narratively#88,645plagioclase#88,715psychomotor#88,745

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list