subsection

noun

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

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

The verdict

“subsection” has 16 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #21,084. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#21,084
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
16
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A defined part of a section.

Corpus desk

Index EN-subsection · subsection · English

subsection · rank #21,084 · 16 variants · 2 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #21,084
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 2 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 16 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH submissive

Nearest frequency peer: submissive (-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 “subsection”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “subsection” 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).

subsection vs substation
80% similar
subsection vs subduction
80% similar

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

Key facts for subsection
PropertyValue
Headwordsubsection
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
Letters10
Frequency rank#21,084
Misspellings tracked16
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “subsection”

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).subsectionlands here:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “submissive” (#21,083), “suede” (#21,085), “studded” (#21,082). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “subsection” is #21,084. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 16 spelling variants around subsection, anoun. Corpus frequency is #21,084 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 4 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 16 likely wrong-spelling variants for subsection, with forms such as "sbusection", "ssubsection", and "subbsection". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 2 confusable-pair relationships, "substation", "subduction", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From sub- + section. The correct English form is subsection, spelled S-U-B-S-E-C-T-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    A defined part of a section.
  2. 2
    A subpart of a legal document such as law.
  3. 3
    An informal taxonomic category below section and above family.
  4. 4
    A taxonomic rank below section and above species.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. To them, just being a webhead or computer geek is not enough. The culture has its own subsections […]
  2. There is experimental evidence showing that cortisol restrains the intensity and duration of the emergency reaction to stress, and catecholamines have been shown to enhance emotional memory in the amygdala (see subsection on "Noradrenaline"). Thus, individuals lacking cortisol would overstore traumatic memories .

Etymology

From sub- + section.

This word in other languages

sous-section(Français)Teilstrecke(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • sbusection
  • ssubsection
  • subbsection
  • subesction
  • subscetion
  • subsecction
  • subseciton
  • subsecsion
  • subsectino
  • subsectionn
  • subsectoin
  • subsecttion
  • subsetcion
  • subssection
  • susbection
  • usbsection

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

sbusection2ssubsection1subbsection1subesction2subscetion2subsecction1subseciton2subsecsion1
Edit distance from "subsection"

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 "subsection"?
"subsection" is spelled S-U-B-S-E-C-T-I-O-N.
What does "subsection" mean?
As a noun, "subsection" means: A defined part of a section.
What words are commonly confused with "subsection"?
"subsection" is commonly confused with "substation", "subduction". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
What is the origin of the word "subsection"?
From sub- + section. 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 "subsection", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

submissive#21,083summertime#21,086seasonally#21,058phosphorus#21,025

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (16 here; floor ≥5).

contrasted16 variantscrystalline16 variantsdisrupting16 variantsinflatable16 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list