essai

[ɛsɛ]

/[ɛsɛ]/ noun

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

The verdict

“essai” is uncommon German (frequency #62,378 among 57,060 “E” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#62,378
frequency rank, German
57,060
“E” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - der Versuch, die Probe

Key facts for essai
PropertyValue
Headwordessai
LanguageGerman
Part of speechNoun
IPA[ɛsɛ]
Letters5
Frequency rank#62,378
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “essai” sits in German frequency

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

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

essai is uncommon German at frequency #62,378 among 57,060 “E” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed [ɛsɛ]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for essai, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

This headword's origin isn't recorded in our source data, so its spelling pattern is best understood through pronunciation rather than a traceable origin. The correct German form is essai, spelled E-S-S-A-I.

Definition

  1. 1
    der Versuch, die Probe
  2. 2
    der Essay
  3. 3
    Naturwissenschaft (besonders Medizin, Pharmazie, Psychologie): der Versuch, das Experiment
  4. 4
    der Versuch

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 German corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "essai"?
"essai" is spelled E-S-S-A-I. The IPA pronunciation is [ɛsɛ].
What does "essai" mean?
As a noun, "essai" means: der Versuch, die Probe
How do you pronounce "essai"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "essai" is [ɛsɛ]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "essai" come from?
"essai" is a German word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
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.

Using “essai”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct German spelling is E-S-S-A-I - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as [ɛsɛ] (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Browse more German words and confusable pairs in the same reference. German words

Other uncommon German words near this rank

Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list