Occasion or Occassion: Which Spelling Is Correct?

People often misspell words with double letters. There are numerous spellings in English that are misspelled by either leaving out a letter or doubling the letter. It becomes even more confusing with the words that have doubled letters in them but not as many as you think. Such confusion frequently occurs when you spell occasion. This article will discuss the word in detail with examples. 

Occasion Vs. Occassion — Which Is Correct?

The words “Occasion” and “Occassion” are similar in spelling and pronunciation, but one is correct, and the other is not.

The correct word is “Occasion” with one “s” and the incorrect form is “Occassion,” which is not even a real word in English. People often confuse these two due to the extra consonant “s.”

The word “occasion” is derived from the Latin word “occasio,” which means “a favorable opportunity.” Occasion is a noun that refers to a particular time, ceremony, event, or opportunity marked by a certain occurrence.

  • We have designer attires for any occasion you need.
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Why Is It so Common to Spell Occasion Incorrectly?

“Occasion” is the right word with a phonological transcription “/əˈkeɪʒ(ə)n/.” Some of the commonly misspelled variations of the word are “occassion,” “ocassion,” “occation,” and more.

With the letter “c” doubled in the word “occasion,” it gets even more confusing whether to double the “s” or not as you type.

Based on the statistics by the gingersoftware website, the word is most commonly misspelled by the variation “occassion” which has a rating of 17.5%. This is due to the confusion with the double “s” between the “a” and “i.” The second common misspelled variation is “occation” with 8.6% among the users.

Definition of Occasion With Example Sentences

The word “occasion” has several free dictionary definitions which are summarized below with example sentences:

A particular time when something happened.

  • I have seen him around on four different occasions.

A special or important event, ceremony, or celebration.

  • Your graduation ceremony is an occasion to celebrate all your hard work.

A beneficial and convenient time, opportunity, or point.

  • Her birthday would be a good occasion for us to meet in person.

The incidental or immediate cause or reason for an action.

  • What is the occasion for this gathering?

Idioms and Phrases With Occasion:

Some of the frequently used idioms and phrases with occasions are:

1) on occasion: sometimes or not so often.

– We visit our village on occasion.

2) rise to the occasion: outperform oneself in a specific event or perform well despite adversity.

The team rose to the occasion after they qualified for the semi-final.

To Wrap Up

It is pretty common for individuals to misspell the words “occasion” and “occassion.” They look almost identical, and it often tricks the eyes when you spell occasion.

The subtle difference between “occasion” and“ocassion” is something that anybody can make mistakes with. However, the best way to avoid this mistake is to study these words carefully. You must know the correct and incorrect ones to avoid errors in writing.

Pam is an expert grammarian with years of experience teaching English, writing and ESL Grammar courses at the university level. She is enamored with all things language and fascinated with how we use words to shape our world.

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