pernoctation
/ˌpɜːnɒkˈteɪʃn̩/
"pernoctation" is a 12-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“pernoctation” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 12
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The action of abiding through the night at a location; (countable) an instance of this; an overnight stay.
Corpus desk
Index EN-pernoctation · pernoctation · English
pernoctation · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-MEGA 12 letters
- VOW-5 5 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "P" thin
- PHOTO-UNK Peer pending
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.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | pernoctation |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /ˌpɜːnɒkˈteɪʃn̩/ |
| Letters | 12 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “pernoctation” in English
Rare enough to double-check
pernoctation is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˌpɜːnɒkˈteɪʃn̩/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.
Zero misspellings are on record for pernoctation in our index, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.
Etymologically, the entry records: PIE word *nókʷts Learned borrowing from Late Latin pernoctātiō (“act of spending of the night (doing something, particularly praying)”), from pernoctō (“to spend the night”) + -tiō (action noun suffix). Pernoctō is from per- (prefix with the sense of compl… The correct English form is pernoctation, spelled P-E-R-N-O-C-T-A-T-I-O-N.
Definition
- 1The action of abiding through the night at a location; (countable) an instance of this; an overnight stay.
- 2The action of walking about at night, especially as a vigil or watch; (countable) an instance of this.
- 3A religious watch kept during normal sleeping hours, during which prayers or other ceremonies are performed; a vigil.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how pernoctation appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
The next morning they [Mary and Joseph] return back with ſpeed toward Jeruſalem; and at night repairing to their former lodging, neither there it ſeems heard they any thing of him [Jesus] (which argues, for this time of his abſence his pernoctation in the Temple), and ſo they muſt paſs this ſecond night alſo in great deſolation.
For the purposes of this clause, residing in Oxford shall mean the occupation of a dwelling-house or lodging in Oxford with pernoctation, and residing in College shall mean the occupation of rooms in College, or of a house in immediate communication with the College, with pernoctation.
Etymology
PIE word *nókʷts Learned borrowing from Late Latin pernoctātiō (“act of spending of the night (doing something, particularly praying)”), from pernoctō (“to spend the night”) + -tiō (action noun suffix). Pernoctō is from per- (prefix with the sense of completion or entirety forming verbs) + nox (“night; darkness”). By surface analysis, pernoctate + -ion.
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.