prosecution

/ˌpɹɒs.ɪˈkjuː.ʃən/

//ˌpɹɒs.ɪˈkjuː.ʃən// noun

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

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

The verdict

“prosecution” has 17 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #6,505. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#6,505
frequency rank, English
4,417
“P” headwords
17
tracked misspellings
4
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The act of prosecuting a scheme or endeavor.

Corpus desk

Index EN-prosecution · prosecution · English

prosecution · rank #6,505 · 17 variants · 4 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #6,505
  • LEN-MEGA 11 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 4 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 17 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,417
  • PHOTO-FINISH pronounced

Nearest frequency peer: pronounced (-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 “prosecution”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “prosecution” 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).

prosecution vs protection
82% similar
prosecution vs prosecutor
82% similar
prosecution vs projection
82% similar

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

Key facts for prosecution
PropertyValue
Headwordprosecution
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˌpɹɒs.ɪˈkjuː.ʃən/
Letters11
Frequency rank#6,505
Misspellings tracked17
Confusable pairs4
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “prosecution”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).prosecutionlands 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 “pronounced” (#6,504), “proves” (#6,506), “priorities” (#6,503). Among 4,417 “P” headwords, “prosecution” is #6,505. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 17 spelling variants around prosecution (IPA /ˌpɹɒs.ɪˈkjuː.ʃən/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #6,505 among 4,417 “P” headwords. Wiktionary lists 4 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 17 likely wrong-spelling variants for prosecution, with forms such as "porsecution", "pprosecution", and "proescution". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 4 confusable-pair relationships, "protection", "prosecutor", "projection", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: Equivalent to prosecute + -ion, from Middle French prosecution, from Late Latin prōsecutio, from Latin prōsequor (“follow, pursue”), from pro- (“onward”) + sequor (“follow”) (English sequel). Compare persecution, and see more at prosecute. The correct English form is prosecution, spelled P-R-O-S-E-C-U-T-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    The act of prosecuting a scheme or endeavor.
  2. 2
    The institution of legal proceedings (particularly criminal) against a person.
  3. 3
    The prosecuting party.
  4. 4
    In many countries, a legal body and institution, usually part of the state apparatus, empowered to perform prosecution. Prosecutor's Office. See Prosecutor.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. The prosecution of the war fell to Winston Churchill.
  2. Many apartheid perpetrators escaped prosecution for their persecution of black Africans and political dissidents.

Etymology

Equivalent to prosecute + -ion, from Middle French prosecution, from Late Latin prōsecutio, from Latin prōsequor (“follow, pursue”), from pro- (“onward”) + sequor (“follow”) (English sequel). Compare persecution, and see more at prosecute.

This word in other languages

acusación(Español)parquet(Français)Verfolgung(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • porsecution
  • pprosecution
  • proescution
  • prosceution
  • proseccution
  • prosectuion
  • prosecuiton
  • prosecusion
  • prosecutino
  • prosecutionn
  • prosecutoin
  • prosecuttion
  • proseuction
  • prossecution
  • prrosecution
  • prsoecution
  • rposecution

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of prosecution - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

porsecution2pprosecution1proescution2prosceution2proseccution1prosectuion2prosecuiton2prosecusion1
Edit distance from "prosecution"

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 "prosecution"?
"prosecution" is spelled P-R-O-S-E-C-U-T-I-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˌpɹɒs.ɪˈkjuː.ʃən/.
What does "prosecution" mean?
As a noun, "prosecution" means: The act of prosecuting a scheme or endeavor.
What words are commonly confused with "prosecution"?
"prosecution" is commonly confused with "protection", "prosecutor", "projection". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "prosecution"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "prosecution" is /ˌpɹɒs.ɪˈkjuː.ʃən/. 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 "prosecution"?
Equivalent to prosecute + -ion, from Middle French prosecution, from Late Latin prōsecutio, from Latin prōsequor (“follow, pursue”), from pro- (“onward”) + sequor (“follow”) (English sequel). Compare persecution, and see more at prosecute. 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 "prosecution", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

politically#6,500spectacular#6,523interactive#6,486temporarily#6,529

Similar misspelling depth

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

inhabitants17 variantsconsequence17 variantsconcentrate17 variantsintermediate17 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list