transition

/tɹænˈzɪ.ʃən/

//tɹænˈzɪ.ʃən// noun

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

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

The verdict

“transition” has 16 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #3,268. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#3,268
frequency rank, English
3,151
“T” headwords
16
tracked misspellings
5
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - The process of change from one form, state, style or place to another.

Corpus desk

Index EN-transition · transition · English

transition · rank #3,268 · 16 variants · 5 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #3,268
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 5 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 16 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,151
  • PHOTO-FINISH tons

Nearest frequency peer: tons (-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 “transition”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “transition” 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).

transition vs transitive
80% similar
transition vs translation
82% similar
transition vs transitional
83% similar

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

Key facts for transition
PropertyValue
Headwordtransition
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/tɹænˈzɪ.ʃən/
Letters10
Frequency rank#3,268
Misspellings tracked16
Confusable pairs5
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “transition”

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “tons” (#3,267), “violent” (#3,269), “threw” (#3,266). Among 3,151 “T” headwords, “transition” is #3,268. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 16 spelling variants around transition (IPA /tɹænˈzɪ.ʃən/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #3,268 among 3,151 “T” headwords. Wiktionary lists 12 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 16 likely wrong-spelling variants for transition, with forms such as "rtansition", "tarnsition", and "tranistion". 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 5 confusable-pair relationships, "transitive", "translation", "transitional", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: Etymology tree Middle French transitionbor. English transition From Middle French transition, from Latin transitio. By surface analysis, transit + -ion. The correct English form is transition, spelled T-R-A-N-S-I-T-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    The process of change from one form, state, style or place to another.
  2. 2
    A word or phrase connecting one part of a discourse to another.
  3. 3
    A brief modulation; a passage connecting two themes.
  4. 4
    A change of key.
  5. 5
    A point mutation in which one base is replaced by another of the same class (purine or pyrimidine); compare transversion.
  6. 6
    A change from defense to attack, or attack to defense.
  7. 7
    The onset of the final stage of childbirth.
  8. 8
    Professional special education assistance for children or adults in the process of leaving one educational environment or support program for another to relatively more independent living.
  9. 9
    A change between forward and backward motion without stopping.
  10. 10
    The process or act of changing one's gender role or physical and sexual characteristics, by social, medical, or legal methods, to conform to their identified gender, rather than the sex assigned at birth.
  11. 11
    A published procedure for instrument flight, coming between the departure and en-route phases of flight, or between en-route flight and an approach/landing procedure.
  12. 12
    Death; passing from life into death.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. All this was extraordinarily distasteful to Churchill.[…]Never before had he felt such repulsion when the vicar displayed his characteristic bluntness or coarseness of speech. In the present connexion—or rather as a transition from the subject that started their conversation—such talk had been distressingly out of place.
  2. In a period of transition from steam to diesel, many of the schemes are inevitably of an interim nature and only on full dieselisation will the final pattern be determined and full benefit derived.

Etymology

Etymology tree Middle French transitionbor. English transition From Middle French transition, from Latin transitio. By surface analysis, transit + -ion.

This word in other languages

transición(Español)transition(Français)Übergang(Deutsch)transição(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • rtansition
  • tarnsition
  • tranistion
  • trannsition
  • transiiton
  • transision
  • transitino
  • transitionn
  • transitoin
  • transittion
  • transsition
  • transtiion
  • trasnition
  • trnasition
  • trransition
  • ttransition

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

rtansition2tarnsition2tranistion2trannsition1transiiton2transision1transitino2transitionn1
Edit distance from "transition"

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 "transition"?
"transition" is spelled T-R-A-N-S-I-T-I-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /tɹænˈzɪ.ʃən/.
What does "transition" mean?
As a noun, "transition" means: The process of change from one form, state, style or place to another.
What words are commonly confused with "transition"?
"transition" is commonly confused with "transitive", "translation", "transitional". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "transition"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "transition" is /tɹænˈzɪ.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 "transition"?
Etymology tree Middle French transitionbor. English transition From Middle French transition, from Latin transitio. By surface analysis, transit + -ion. 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 "transition", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

ridiculous#3,257processing#3,253atmosphere#3,208assessment#3,207

Similar misspelling depth

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

membership16 variantscomponents16 variantsrepresents16 variantsconsistent16 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list