volition

/vəˈlɪʃ(ə)n/

//vəˈlɪʃ(ə)n// noun

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

"volition" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“volition” has 12 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #36,008. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#36,008
frequency rank, English
969
“V” headwords
12
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A conscious choice or decision.

Corpus desk

Index EN-volition · volition · English

volition · rank #36,008 · 12 variants · 2 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #36,008
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-LOW 2 pairs
  • VAR-MID 12 variants
  • BOOK-MID 969
  • PHOTO-FINISH Vilnius

Nearest frequency peer: Vilnius (-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 “volition”

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

corpus weight

What this shows “volition” 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).

volition vs vocation
75% similar
volition vs violation
78% similar

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

Key facts for volition
PropertyValue
Headwordvolition
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/vəˈlɪʃ(ə)n/
Letters8
Frequency rank#36,008
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “volition”

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Same rarity band neighbours include “Vilnius” (#36,007), “wane” (#36,009), “Unwin” (#36,005). Among 969 “V” headwords, “volition” is #36,008. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 12 spelling variants around volition (IPA /vəˈlɪʃ(ə)n/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #36,008 among 969 “V” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for volition, with forms such as "ovlition", "vloition", and "voiltion". 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, "vocation", "violation", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: From French volition, from Medieval Latin volitiō (“will, volition”), from Latin volō (“to wish; to want; to mean or intend”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *welh₁- (“to choose; to want”)) + -tiō (suffix forming nouns relating to some action or the re… The correct English form is volition, spelled V-O-L-I-T-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    A conscious choice or decision.
  2. 2
    The mental power or ability of choosing; the will.
  3. 3
    A concept that distinguishes whether or not the subject or agent intended something.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. […] And as the Understanding doth at once apprehend it as Good Abſolutely, or in ſome Reſpect, and Evil in other reſpects, and Comparatively a Leſs Good; ſo doth the Will at once continue to Love or Will it ſo farre as it is Apprehended as Good, and to Nill and Reject it as inconſiſtent with a Greater Good, or a hinderer of it. But if it fall out that the…
  2. [Antonio] Conte has broken the mould further with the suggestion he might escape the [Roman] Abramovich cleaver, becoming the first of his line to leave by his own volition.

Etymology

From French volition, from Medieval Latin volitiō (“will, volition”), from Latin volō (“to wish; to want; to mean or intend”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *welh₁- (“to choose; to want”)) + -tiō (suffix forming nouns relating to some action or the result of an action) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *-tis (suffix forming abstract or action nouns from verbs)).

This word in other languages

volición(Español)volonté(Français)Vorsatz(Deutsch)vontade(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ovlition
  • vloition
  • voiltion
  • voliiton
  • volision
  • volitino
  • volitionn
  • volitoin
  • volittion
  • vollition
  • voltiion
  • vvolition

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ovlition2vloition2voiltion2voliiton2volision1volitino2volitionn1volitoin2
Edit distance from "volition"

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 "volition"?
"volition" is spelled V-O-L-I-T-I-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /vəˈlɪʃ(ə)n/.
What does "volition" mean?
As a noun, "volition" means: A conscious choice or decision.
What words are commonly confused with "volition"?
"volition" is commonly confused with "vocation", "violation". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "volition"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "volition" is /vəˈlɪʃ(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 "volition"?
From French volition, from Medieval Latin volitiō (“will, volition”), from Latin volō (“to wish; to want; to mean or intend”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *welh₁- (“to choose; to want”)) + -tiō (suffix forming nouns relating to some action... 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 "volition", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

abetting#36,025accolade#36,026tinnitus#35,989testicle#35,982

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (12 here; floor ≥5).

addicting12 variantsaimlessly12 variantssummarily12 variantsCoughlin12 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list